Dragon Wing and Demon Claw
by Zarla
Summary: In an alternate universe, the dragon race and the demon race have been at war for aeons, but two outcasts from both societys are about to break every law they know. CidxVincent, hints of ZackxCloud. Shounen-ai, some angst. Part 8 now up.
1. Forbidden Meeting

Dragon Wing and Demon Claw  


(By "I have da amazin ability ta turn almost any idle idea inta a actual fic" Zar)

(Warning: I am not responsible fer any mental damage caused by reading this fic.) Where...?

He was always around this area...

He shifted his spear in his claws, holding it tightly so the wind could not wrest it from his grasp. His bright blue eyes scanned the ground as it moved underneath him. He was looking for a telltale splotch of black, a sign that he had found what he was looking for. He knew the exact shade of black as well, although that had not been required of him...

They had sent him to take care of the problem, to take care of the threat they knew nothing of, because he was strong, because he didn't volunteer, and because he appeared to also be the most emotionally repressed regarding what had happened.

Of course he cared. Just for the wrong party. Not that he would ever say that. But he supposed that they thought that would make it easier for them, to think that he didn't care...

But secretly, he believed they were just as stupid as those they were fighting against. But he really had no choice of what to do.

They told him to do it, so that's what he would do...if he could...

Which he knew he couldn't...

A flash of movement caught his attention and he stopped, large, webbed, green and metallic blue marbled wings beating the air behind him smoothly to keep him aloft. Had he seen...?

It must have been him...no one was that shade of ebony except him...

It moved again. He tightened his grip on his spear, his claws scratching across the green and blue scales that covered his hands up to the elbow.

That had to be him...that had to be.

He took a deep breath and angled himself downwards, folding his wings towards his body to increase the rate of his descent. The ground spiraled towards him, and it took his breath away, but this was what he lived for, the freefall. He loved to fly, but he loved the exhiliaration that came with it, which sometimes came at the threat of death. He watched the world move around him as he came closer to the ground.

The black splotch clarified as he came closer, and he knew it was him. He knew now.

He expanded his wings outwards, causing him to stop just before hitting the ground, his shoulders tingling with the effort it had taken to keep his wings extended against so much pressure.

Alighting on his talons, he kneeled, holding his spear out in front of him defensively, just in case...his tail lashed about behind him angrily, blue and green scales shining in the fading light. He shook his head once, to clear the blond strands that fell over his goggles to obscure his vision at an inopportune time.

The black creature in front of him was curled into a ball, only the tips of it's bloodstained wings protruding, and the long black hair falling in thick waves. It was hard to discern with the rapidly fading light, but he knew the shade too well now.

At the rush of wind of his arrival, the curled figure slowly turned, and the scarlet eyes met again with sky blue.

The look on the demon's face was painful and sad and lost, his face streaked with tears, his mouth stained with dried blood, the tips of fangs protruding slightly, the hands dark black, extending from the elbow, ending with claws that matched his own save for color, and a thick tail that extended from his back, the same length as his own, only without spikes. The demon's left arm up to the elbow was made of gleaming gold metal, which made him so easy to find, even among his own kind. Dressed in black rags, the demon stared at him, the only other color the red bandanna that kept his hair away from his face. He stared at him, asking him what he was trying to do without using words.

They stared at eachother.

He folded his wings behind his back, thudding his spear into the ground. He walked towards the demon, finding his quarry standing awkwardly and walking towards him, as if he had not walked in a long time. Knowing him, he most likely had not. He had probably been hiding in this area ever since what had happened...because it hadn't been safe for him before, but now the world was an even more terrifying place for his kind...

"#$^# Vin..." The dragon could not help but mumble the words that escaped his mouth as the taller demon enclosed his arms around him, seeking and giving comfort in one gesture that was returned with the same deliberation. "What are we supposed to do now...?"

He could feel the scales on his tail coming in contact with the flesh of the demons. Their tails entertwined slowly, seeking comfort that was so hard to find in this world. The claws held onto his back, and he could feel the demons muscles underneath his thin pale skin underneath his own hands. He closed his blue eyes, trying to forget what he had been told to do. Ordered to do.

The demon's voice was so soft, like a whisper on the wind, a slight trace of smoke on a moonlight night, a lone feather being carried off in the wind...he shivered because he wasn't sure whether or not he would ever hear it again, and the thought was always enough to frighten him.

"I'm not sure, Highwind, but...I can't do it alone..."

There was a rush of wind around them as the moon began to rise, the sun finally disappearing and the land around them settling into night, and the two expanded their wings, meeting the tips and covering eachother from the chill breeze. They held onto eachother, a meeting that was forebidden by almost every law that they knew. The fact that they were touching was enough to merit death...

To need eachother this much meant much, much worse...

"Highwind, I'm scared."

They both were shaking.

"#$#%, me too, Vin..."

~~~

The dragon race and the demon race had been enemies for a long time. This wasn't unusual. A lot of races were enemies with the demon race, blaming them for the problems in the world that were in fact cause by their own selfish behavior, but the clearly evil appearance of the demon was enough to permanently condemn them as the world's scapegoat. Their race became few and weak, and those that survived remained hidden, trying to keep a low profile lest they be destroyed to help "further the advancement of the world" in general. The demons were not as evil or as bloodthirsty as everyone supposed...in fact, due to the race's almost total genocide, the demons had become somewhat meek and shy, desiring privacy and quiet more then anything else, although legends about their cruelty and desire for blood circulated without stop.

The dragons were an immensely proud race and the existence of demons seemed to them to be proof that they had accomplished nothing in ridding the world of evil. The dragons were very particular about details, about perfection, about purity, and the fact that at points a demon would surface was enough to send the dragons into a frenzy, sending out their fastest and strongest warriors to hunt down the rogue demons that had been foolish enough to reveal their existence.

Cid Highwind was one of those soldiers. 

He didn't seem to quite fit in with dragon society. Although his blood was pure, his actions were not. His addiction to nicotine, his foul language, and his overwhelming love of sky were deemed peculiar by his friends and disrespectful to his elders. Cid did not have any respect for anyone and wasn't about to let some old lizards try and push it into him.

Cid's coloration, a metallic blue-green that marbled over the webbing between his wings, the scales on his feet, hands, and tail, was an extremely rare anomaly. Metallic colors were common, but they had never been mixed in this way before. Cid was known for that and also his outrageous behavior. And his prowess in battle.

So Cid was sent out in one of these rages to find a demon and slay it, wherever or whatever it was. He was also instructed not to come back until he had proof, which Cid basically took as a polite way of saying "#^$# off". He didn't care, as the dragon society had never appealed to him, so he spent his time leisurely, coasting along air currents and occasionally stopping to look around.

It was an accident that brought him into contact with his first and only demon.

He had been flying for a long time and he felt tired and, once he landed, sweaty from flying so close to the sun. Cid loved the sun, it's warmth and the color it lended the sky. He had found a lake and had decided to have some fun in it, although most dragons were naturally wary of water because it extinguished their inner flame if it was ingested. Cid wasn't stupid and therefore did not get water in his mouth, so he enjoyed his short sojourn in the lake.

When he came out, however, water running down his scales and skin, he noticed a pair of eyes watching him from the bushes, as red as the legends had warned him.

He seized his spear quickly and backed away, getting into an attacking crouch and expanding his wings, trying to appear larger then he was. He was aware that he was small for his species.

The creature that walked out from the bush walked on all fours, thin limbs that ended with the same claws as his own walking with quiet precision. He was only clad in a pair of very loose black pants, from the back of which protruded the thick, black tail. The wings were folded quietly against his back. The red eyes never left his as the demon sat next to where he had put his clothes.

There was a very awkward silence as the two stared at eachother, Cid not sure what to think and the demon just regarding him emotionlessly.

Finally the demon moved, standing on his hindlegs and picking up Cid's shirt. Walking with the same grace that he had on four legs, he walked over to where Cid remained crouched, holding out the shirt in what Cid recognized as a variant on a gesture of friendship among his kind.

"I think you want this, correct?"

Cid blinked and lowered his spear, confused.

"Yeah, I guess."

He straightened and felt a typical flash of anger when he noted that the demon was taller then he was. It figured, everyone was. He could feel the heat in his chest as he automatically began to generate flame, a typical reaction to anger among his kind, but he forced himself to keep it down.

He took the shirt from the demon's claws, expecting to find some stain or something where he had touched it, but the shirt was just as it had been left. The demon put his hands behind his back and watched as Cid awkwardly pulled the shirt over his wings and body, realizing how he must appear. Trying to hide the fact he was blushing, he turned to ask the demon to retrieve his pants...

Only to find that the demon already had them and was holding them out.

After Cid was fully dressed, he stared at the demon awkwardly, not sure of what to make of the silent, stoic expression on it's blank, pale face.

"Well, what?" He couldn't take the silence. The demon cocked his head slightly to one side, as if regarding what he had said.

"Well indeed. Are you going to attack me?"

Cid felt really awkward now. The demon had made no threatening movements toward him, and at the moment he felt no malice towards him. Unlike the majority of his species which harbored an intense dislike of demons just from stories and legends, Cid was cynical enough to decide that he would make up his mind when he actually found a demon. Here was a demon, and it hadn't attacked him so far...

Wait, why was a demon asking if he would attack IT?

"Um...#^$#, why? You haven't done nothin' to me yet." He took a cigarette from the goggles that he had refused to remove even when bathing and lit it with a focused breath. He inhaled deeply and tried to keep himself calm. "What about you? Goin' to attack me yet?"

The demon shook his head slowly back and forth. "I have no real reason to. You haven't really threatened me with harm yet, other then your battle stance, and I think that was because I startled you..."

Despite the demon's emotionless voice and face, his tail was moving back and forth very sharply. He was nervous, Cid knew that movement well...

"Well, what's your name?" Cid asked, breathing out a cloud of smoke. The demon stared at the smoke with strange eyes.

"Vincent. Vincent Valentine. And you are?" The demon held out a claw towards him almost in mockery of the elder dragons that Cid knew. Cid shrugged.

"Cid Highwind." Cid decided to go for it. He grasped Vincent's claw in his own and shook it, noting the shocked expression that came over the demon's face. "Nice to meet you, Vin."

"Vin...?" Vincent thought for a moment, then a ghost of a smile appeared on his face. "Vin..."

He brushed a strand of black hair out of his face, tucking it behind one of his ears. Directly above his ears Cid could see small horns, curling upwards, the same shade as his hair. Unconsciously, Cid brushed his own hair away from his ears, where the small greenish-blue horns that swept towards the back of his head. Technically his horns should be longer and more elaborate, but again, he was strange for his species.

He had heard that demons horns were longer though as well. Maybe Vincent was different too...

"I think I like that..." Vincent's voice was so soft and quiet, it was nothing like Cid had expected. Despite all his efforts not to hold any preconceptions, some still snuck into his mind. He tried to force them away. "Vin..."

"$%&#, if you don't mind me askin'..." Cid wasn't one to try and be subtle. "Don't demons have longer horns...?"

Vincent stared at him for a moment, then returned his hands back to his head, running his fingers across the small horns that were hidden against his black hair. He gave another ghost of a smile, then responded with quiet amusement that matched his voice perfectly.

"Don't dragons have longer horns as well...?"

Cid scratched his head absently, noting his claws sliding across the small horns above his ears. "Yeah, good point. $#@%."

Vincent scratched his chest absently with his claws, staring at Cid in silence. Cid noted the sharp contrast. While Cid's arms and feet were covered with scales, the black areas on the demons arm and legs were smooth and unbroken. Cid self-consciously put one hand over the other, running his hands across his scales nervously. Luckily the scales on one hand prevented him from getting cut. When rubbed the wrong way, dragon scales could slash up ones hand quite easily. 

Where had this nervousness come from? He had never been nervous before, not around any of his own species. Why did he feel so awkward? He could sense his tailtip twitching back and forth shortly and quickly. He wished he could stop that movement, but the tail was something that could betray emotions very easily, even when your face was expressionless.

Vincent scratched his chest lightly with his claws, leaving slight white marks across his chest from the pressure. Vincent was pale, almost white, and the sharp black of his hand was hard to comprehend.

Cid took a nervous drag from his cigarette and turned away, not sure of where to look. He looked back at the lake, which was shining with the light of the fading sun. 

#$^#, where had the time gone?

"Night is approaching." Vincent's voice simply stated the obvious, soft and quiet. Cid looked back at him and found the scarlet eyes kept searching his own, as if asking something.

"Well, um...#$^#. Um...I don't have anywhere to go..." Cid rubbed the back of his head, his claws shifting his hair around the band of his goggles. Why was he acting this childish...?

I don't want him to leave until I know everything...

"Do you want me to stay?" Vincent's soft voice. Cid coughed sharply, unintentionally releasing a small fireball that dissiapiated into the air. Cid cursed himself mentally. Releasing fire unintentionally was a symbol among his kind of the lack of control. He waved away the smoke.  
"Sorry 'bout that..."

He turned to Vincent to find he had taken a few steps back, staring at where the smoke had been in alarm. When Cid's eyes found his again, there was a touch of fear in red.

Vincent shook his head slowly, as if trying to bring himself back to reality.

"I'm...I'm sorry..." There was emotion in his voice that had not been present before. "I...I kind of...I must have forgotten you were...a dragon." Vincent closed his eyes and turned away, his tail curling around his legs, a common sign of shame and embarrasment among all tailed races. "I'm sorry, Highwind..."

Cid walked towards Vincent, noting the falling of the sun with little concern. The setting of the sun brought a sharp blast of wind across the planet, a cold, powerful wind for only a few moments, then night was total. A equally powerful hot wind brought the dawn. The wind shouldn't be a problem. Vincent was his concern at the moment.

"Vin, what?" Cid was confused. "Wait, what's wrong...?"

Vincent's scarlet eyes looked at him for a moment over his shoulder, but he didn't turn to face him. "Highwind...this is very wrong, for both of us. We shouldn't even be speaking. This is not good..."

The black demonic wings that protruded from Vincent's now visible back melded in so smoothly with his skin, but Cid noticed that there were some dark lines crossing around their base, scars and such that lined his bare back.

Cid then realized that Vincent had turned his back to him, and apparently didn't think he would be hurt.

He trusts me...

He could see from where he was that Vincent had crossed his arms across his chest, holding his elbows in worry. He walked forward, hearing the grass rustling as the sun was finishing it's descent from the sky.

"Vin, c'mon."

"No, no, I shouldn't be talking to you at all, I should have...I should have listened to what they had told me..."

Cid circled Vincent until he was standing in front of him again, expanding his wings and holding his tail upright in a show of confidence. He gently took hold of Vincent's arms, being careful not to pull his hands the wrong way, fearing cutting his arms with his scales unless he was careful. The taller demon stared down at him confused and frightened.

"Listen, Vin. Why didn't you run away? Why did you even stay to talk to me?"

Vincent paused for a moment, and Cid saw uncertainty appear on his pale features. His response was soft and frightened.

"I...you weren't like them..."

The sun set, and the blast of wind swept across the area quickly, sweeping away everything that was not securely tied down.

The wind buffeted the two, and Cid found his natural ingrained reaction come into play. He moved in front of Vincent, pushing him downwards toward the ground and wrapping his wings around the both of them. The wind pushed against him sharply, but could not penetrate his scaled wings.

When Cid opened his eyes after the wind had stopped, Vincent was hanging onto him tightly, his own eyes closed. Cid withdrew his wings, the world outside now almost completly black except for the dim light of the moon.

"Vin, the wind's died down." Cid wasn't exactly sure what to say. He gently touched Vincent's shoulders to bring him back to the world, but Vincent refused to let go, his eyes still shut tightly and his claws still clasped across Cid's back. "Vin? Vin, you okay?"

Vincent was shaking, but he wasn't sure why. He kept his claws on his shoulders waiting for a response.

"You know...you're the first person...ever...to show any kindness to me like that..."

"Kindness?" Cid was confused as Vincent continued holding on. "What'd I do...?"

Vincent finally opened his eyes, which were now soft and lonely compared to their previous cold appearance. He stared at Cid in a way that he had never seen before. "You sheltered me from the wind..."

Cid shrugged, trying to keep an air of nonchalance, but it was difficult considering his position. "#$^#, anyone would've done that, it's nothin' special..."

Vincent stared him directly in the eyes, his face trying to stay serious, but the pain it took for his next statement was obvious.

"Highwind...I am a demon."

Vincent closed his eyes, as if expecting some kind of punishment.

Cid moved his claws away from Vincent's arms and instead interlocked them around his chest, holding him close. He could feel the confusion enamanating from the demon at the gesture. His own voice was soft in response.

"$#%# Vin, do you really think I care?"

"We're enemies..." It was almost impossible to hear him, but Cid was listening.

"No, dragons and demons are enemies-"

"And what are we?" Vincent pulled away sharply, curling into a small ball and wrapping his wings around himself. Cid sat back, taking a deep breath from his cigarette and looking at the now black sky.

"I'm Cid. You're Vin. Simple as that."

Vincent shook his head slowly. "They never told me it would be like this to talk to one of your kind..."

Cid laughed slightly. "That makes two of us. Hey...if you don't mind me askin'..." Cid took another deep breath to try and calm himself. The last few moments had been emotionally stressful, but he wasn't about to show it. "What happened to your arm...?"

Vincent managed to curl up so far that all he was was black, his wings hiding all of his flesh, including the metallic arm. His voice seemed to come from far away.

"I'm not supposed to be like this..."

"Really?" Cid blinked in surprise, leaning in closer. Vincent uncurled slightly and stared at him with sad eyes.

"No...I wasn't a demon...I became one."

Cid scratched his head slightly. "I didn't know that happened."

Vincent pushed his black claw into his hair, as if he had a headache. "I...I don't really...remember most of what happened...just...that I'm a demon now because of it..."

"#$^#, that's not fair at all." Cid shrugged unhappily. "They have a reason?"

Vincent dragged his metallic claw against the ground. "I've done...some bad things in my time...I guess...that's why, really."

Cid made a derisive sound at that and turned sideways. "No one deserves that, Vin. Really."

"I did...or else they wouldn't have done this..." Vincent apparently found something comforting or nonthreatening about Cid's presence and was removing himself from the ball. His wings moved away from his body and folded back against his back, and he let his feet move forward, his tail unwrapping from around his body.

Cid made another noise. "#%#@, 'course they would've, some people are just plain $%^#$s."

"Aren't you frightened of me...?" Vincent asked, looking at Cid sidelong from where he was sitting. Cid started slightly but hid it well.

"Scared? Why the #$^# should I be? I mean..."

"Highwind...I AM a demon...and...if I ever...if someone ever got me angry...I would lose control completely...and..." Vincent's pauses were accompanied with deep breaths inward, trying to keep his composure while he was talking.

"#^#%, Dragons do that too, Vin. Make a dragon mad and poof, whole town is completely toasted to #$^#. Everyone loses control when they're angry, Vin, it's no big deal."

"I don't know..." Vincent turned slightly so he could see him clearly. "You don't react...you're not like anyone I've ever talked to before. Most people want me dead on sight..."

Cid rolled his eyes. "#$^#, a lot of people want dragons dead on sight too. Blindness, that's all it really is if you ask me."

Vincent came closer and sat next to Cid, so that their shoulders were touching and Cid could feel the webbing of Vincent's wings rubbing against his own.

"They're going to kill us for this, you know that..." Vincent sighed deeply. Cid could sense the motion from where he was sitting and shrugged.

"#$^#, they would've killed me for lettin' you touch my clothes. I was dead the minute you talked to me. Why stop now?" Cid laughed for a short time. "They hated me anyway, this would be the perfect excuse for them to get rid of me..."

"I'm sorry..."

Cid was silent for a moment, staring upwards. "#%^#...I guess I kind of wanted to die...considerin' how pointless my life really is..."

Vincent was silent for almost the exact same amount of time. "Highwind...I felt the same way...my life really...has no purpose but to be ended by someone..."

"No way, Vin." Cid shook his head. "No way, you got to have someone in your life, right...?"

Vincent was silent for a long time. Cid felt Vincent's tail brush against his own.

"No...I don't have anyone anymore..."

Cid didn't think it would be wise to ask any more questions. "Well..."

Vincent remained silent, his tail still moving behind him. He was nervous or awkward or just upset, Cid could tell by the movements. He also knew because his tail was moving in almost the same way.

"I don't know, I'm glad I met you anyways, Vin."

Vincent stared at him in surprise, his voice holding a slight tinge of humor to it. "You're glad you met a demon?"

Cid turned and smirked at him. "What, is there something wrong with that?"

Vincent looked upwards. "I don't know, I guess having the opinion of the entire world against you kind of would make it wrong..."

"Yeah, and you know what?" Cid smiled to himself evilly, his fangs showing in the dim light. "You're too god#$^# serious!"

With that, Cid turned and grabbed Vincent, pushing him to the ground and sitting on his back, running his claws lightly across his sides. "And not only that, I bet you're $%&#in' ticklish!"

"No!" Vincent gasped and tried to wriggle away, laughing helplessly. "Stop it! Agh!"

Cid's laughter soon joined along with Vincent's as he continued tickling him until Vincent used his tail to knock him away. Cid was back on his feet in seconds, watching as Vincent reared upwards, his wings expanding behind him, blending in perfectly with the night sky.

"You're going to pay for that, Highwind!"

"Got to catch me first, #$^#er!" Cid laughed and lept into the air, a flash of green and blue against the sky.

With a silent fluttering of wings, the two took to the sky, darting back and forth among trees and clouds, playing a game of tag that was common only among children of their races. Laughing and playing in the sky, the two spent most of the night trying to catch one another.

The game finally ended when Vincent had managed to conceal himself in a cloud and pounce on Cid from behind. Latching onto him from behind, Vincent flapped his wings and forced the dragon downwards, laughing the entire time.

"C'mon, Highwind, break out of this one!"

"God$%# you, you're too tall!" Cid struggled against Vincent's grip, but couldn't escape him without the proper leverage. "And you're goin' to ram the ground!"

"Oh am I?" Vincent's voice had the touch of amusement it had before as he changed course abruptly to the lake.

"$^$#!"

The two landed in the lake with a large explosion of water, splashing everything in a twenty foot radius. Underneath the water, Vincent let go of Cid and swam easily to the surface, using his tail for speed. Surfacing easily, he brushed waterlogged hair out of his eyes and looked around for the dragon.

Cid surfaced a short time later, gasping and panting heavily. He was glaring at the demon, who was now laughing softly.

"Sorry, I guess I should have warned you."

"Warned me my #$^!" Cid lifted his wings free of the water causing another rain of shimmering droplets to fly in the air as he lept at Vincent, dragging him down in the water. "Don't you know dragons are vulnerable to water?"

Vincent laughed along with Cid as he wrestled against him in the water. "Yeah, you weren't too weak to it when you were bathing in it, were you?"

"Just for that, you're in for real trouble now, Vin!"

The two sent water cascading everywhere as the two playfully pushed eachother underwater or splashed eachother, laughing brightly and caring for nothing but the amusement the moment gave them.

Finally, the two pulled out of the water in exhaustion. After shaking off as much water as possible, the two sat together under a nearby tree. Vincent was wringing out his hair, trying to rid himself of the water that it had been weighted down with, while Cid was letting the liquid run out of his goggles.

"$%&$ Vin, once you let go you're actually pretty fun, you know that?"

"Let go?" Vincent squeezed and watched water run down his hands. He brushed the strand of hair back behind his ear, his horns more visible now that his hair was shining brightly and was closer to his head due to the moisture.

Cid put his goggles back on, sweeping his hand across his hair before hand to try and rid it of water as well. His small horns gleamed in the light. "Yeah, you know, stop being so god#$^# uptight about everythin'."

"I'm not uptight." Vincent pushed his hair back and stared at Cid quizzically.

Cid breathed a cloud of smoke into the air in response, this not from a cigarette. He laughed. "^#$%, you're as uptight as the grand high council of fogies that run my town."

"I am not..." Vincent stared down. "Or at least, I don't intend to be."

Cid stared at him for a few moments before speaking. "Aw c'mon, Vin, don't get like that."

Vincent held his own arms, leaning against the tree heavily. "This is so wrong, Highwind...it shouldn't be so much fun to be with you, you shouldn't be this nice or make this much sense...it's not fair. Why do you have to be a dragon..."

"#$^#, why do you have to be a demon?" Cid put his hands behind his head and leaned against the tree in a good imitation of Vincent. "Why the #$^$ ask questions we can't answer, eh?"

Vincent stared down. "What's going to happen when they find out..."

Cid put out one hand, staring at the gleaming clean scales against the stars. "Simple really. They're goin' to torture us. They might kill us if we're lucky, but we're in for some serious $%^# before they do that."

Vincent stared at Cid in amazement. "Doesn't that frighten you...?"

"#^#$, we all got to die sometime, kid." Cid smiled. "I forget where I heard that. Either way, it doesn't matter. It's true anyway. I'd rather remember havin' fun with you and dyin' badly then livin' long and havin' nothin'."

"I guess..." Vincent sighed and turned towards Cid. "I still don't understand why you want to be with me...I'm a demon..."

"Okay, that's it." Cid turned and made Vincent face him, staring him directly in the eyes. He moved his claws upwards and touched Vincent's horns.

"Look, you got horns."

Cid moved his hands to his own green horns. "So do I."

Cid took Vincent's hands in his own, careful not to move the wrong way. "I got claws, you got claws."

Cid put his arms around Vincent's neck and touched the wings that came from his back. "You got wings..."

To his surprise, he found that Vincent returned the gesture, his hands gently holding onto the arm of his wings, their faces only inches from eachother. "And so do you, Highwind."

Cid wasn't sure what to do. His tail lashed sharply, then was caught by Vincent's, which seemed stronger and more prehensile then his own. He stopped moving almost completly.

"You have a tail..." The breath from Vincent's lips seemed too soft to actually produce sound. "And I have one as well."

"Right." Cid nodded slightly, Vincent's hair brushing against his forehead as he did so. He looked upwards at him. "What the #$^# makes us different?"

Vincent pulled him close, holding onto him. "Curse you and your perfect logic, Highwind. You don't know how having someone care feels..."

"Sure I do, Vin..." Cid awkwardly returned the gesture. "You care 'bout me, right?"

He could feel Vincent's breath coming in slowly against him. "No one has ever cared about a demon like me..."

"#$^# Vin..." Cid held onto him tightly, not sure of what else to do. "You're not a demon, you're just a dragon in a different form." 


	2. Angels, the High Council, and Sephiroth

Vincent shook slightly, as if trying to hold something in, and Cid remained with his hands clasped behind him, not sure of what else to do. Vincent continued to hold onto him, as if afraid he would run away, and his tail entertwined even more with his own, the black skin sliding over his scales carefully, as if knowing the consequences if rubbed incorrectly.

"Let's be together forever...can we promise that...?" Vincent's voice sounded very afraid and alone. Cid could think of nothing else that was more important at the moment.

"I promise you, Vin. Nothin' will ever keep us apart."

Vincent's words were so soft. "You're the best thing that ever happened to me..."

Cid wasn't sure how to respond at first, just feeling Vincent shiver against him, his bare chest now dry but cold. He felt almost guilty at the thought that his wet clothes couldn't be helping him. He just continued holding onto the demon, not sure of what else to do.

The two ended up falling asleep that way, waiting in the silence for words from the other. They leaned against the tree, still entwined in eachothers arms, their wings stretching across and protecting them from the hot wind of dawn and from prying eyes, a natural reflex that almost every winged species had.

Black, green, and blue intermingling to provide the perfect cover, with the two tails twisted around eachother tightly.

When Cid woke up, his clothes were dry. This occupied his attention for a good deal of time as he struggled to come back to the world.

After a short period of staring at his shirt and wondering how it had gotten dry when he remembered it had caused him so much discomfort before, he noticed that Vincent was gone.

"Vin...?" He was waking up quickly now and he looked around. The sun was shining brightly on the lake and he could tell by the heat that it had been up for some time. What had happened? Where had he gone? "Vin?"

Vincent's face suddenly dropped in front of his own, upside down. "Yes, Highwind?"

"HOLY $%&$!" Cid rolled to one side and flared out his wings in shock. Vincent was suspending himself by his tail from the branch of the tree that the two had slept under, staring at him upside down as if nothing was wrong. Vincent's hair was so long it nearly touched the ground.

Cid pressed a scaled hand to his chest, trying to slow his rapid heartbeat. "Holy livin' #^#$, Vin, you nearly gave me a heart attack!"

"I apologize." The emotionless tone that Cid sadly recognized was back in Vincent's voice as he easily and gracefully fell from the tree onto his hind legs. "I didn't mean to startle you."

"Yeah, like $%^$ you didn't." Cid turned away from Vincent and coughed, letting lose a short stream of fire. Letting fire flow from his chest was an excellent release of stress for dragons, but Cid didn't want to frighten Vincent again, so he tried to keep it quiet. "Why the $%$% you up so early anyway?"

"I was getting us something to eat." The emotionless tone was so different then the frightened and lonely voice that Vincent had had the night before. Cid turned back towards Vincent, smiling.

"#$^$, why didn't you say so in the first place?"

Vincent was holding a black bundle in his arms. He placed it on the ground quietly and sat down, his wings folded serenly against his back. He picked the bundle apart with his claws with such precision that Cid couldn't help but be fascinated. He sat down next to Vincent.

"I...I wasn't sure what...dragons ate..." A awkward tone came into Vincent's voice, and even this was a welcome respite from the quiet emotionlessness that it only had before. "But I tried to find something..."

Inside the black fabric were several dark roots and various kinds of fruit. Vincent reached down with his long thin claws and picked up one of the roots.

"$%&$, that's fine Vin, really." Cid reached down and pulled out one of the fruit, biting into it readily and watching as Vincent somewhat curled up, holding the root in both hands and eating it very slowly, as if waiting for someone take it away from him.

"What're you eatin'?"

"Oh...this...?" Vincent held the root out, staring at it. "I don't know, really. I just know demons can eat it, and no one really cares."

"What'd you mean by that?" Cid's fangs made a crunching noise as he took another bite. Vincent put his arms around his knees and stared at the root with it's small marks from hesitant fangs.

"You know...demons are...supposed to be killed, really...if anyone sees us eating anything like..." Vincent gestured with his metallic claw at what Cid was busily eating. "Like that...we'd get killed for it. We're not supposed to eat, we're supposed to be spirits that don't really require food."

Cid snorted and finished off the piece of fruit, throwing it to one side and picking up another piece just as readily. He used his sharp claws to slice it into pieces. He took one of them and offered it to Vin. "Never heard such bull%$^# in m'life, Vin. Eat whatever the $^#% you want."

Vin stared at him, blinking once or twice before he reached out and picked up the piece, holding it in his smooth hands in confusion. "Are you sure?"

Cid stared at him and Vincent looked away, what seemed to be a slight tinge of red on his face. "Sorry, I'm just used to...I'm not really used to people offering me things..."

"#$^# Vin, is it really that bad?" Cid rolled his eyes and bit down on one of his own pieces. Vincent nodded slowly.

"Yeah...I mean...there aren't many of us left...the rest of us have been killed, really...our own society has become extremely regulated, because of our rarity, and now more demons wander out to be slain then just to die under such oppressive rule..."

"Is that..." Cid paused, glancing at Vincent, then returned his eyes to the sky. "Is that why..."

Vincent nodded again, but didn't raise his head afterwards, hiding his face. "Yes, that's why I appeared to you...I thought you would kill me...and I'm tired of hiding behind laws that my own kind makes that I don't understand...I wanted to die..."

"Aw c'mon Vin, don't say that." Cid finished his piece and picked up another. "You got a lot to live for."

Vincent was silent, then he sighed and uncurled, staring upwards along with Cid. "Well...I didn't then, but I guess I do now..."

Vincent stared and closed his eyes. "I had no friends, really...not even with other demons, no one even wanted to be near me...I'm such a horrific abomination...I'm not a true demon, I was made this way, no real demon wanted to be near me, but I had nowhere to go...everyday to me meant nothing but more suffering under the claws of people who claimed I never fit in, but wouldn't let me talk to anyone else..."

Vincent turned when Cid's claw rested on his shoulder. "#$^# Vin, I'm your friend, right?"

Vincent smiled sadly. "Which proves that everything they tried to tell me was false."

Cid finished his next piece and brushed off his claws, replacing it back on Vincent's shoulder when he was done. "#$^#, Vin, you know that I never had any friends either?"

Vincent stared at him with an expressionless face, but his tail and his eyes said otherwise. "I find that hard to believe..."

"No, serious." Cid tried to look earnest and failed, earning another smile from Vincent. "I annoy the #$^# out of everyone, especially other drags. They all have a big stick up the #$^, they can't handle any variety." Cid held his blue-green claws up towards the sky. "Can you believe some #$^#ers teased me about my colors? How low can you get, honestly..."

Vincent could sense the sadness and loneliness underneath Cid's rough tone, and sighed as well. "Kind of fitting that we're both outcasts..."

"Well, we're not alone anymore, right?" Cid smiled at Vincent. "I got a friend now, and you got one too."

Vincent nodded, smiling back at him. "Right, that's all that matters. Even if you are a weird color."

"I'm a weird color?" Cid took an incredulous tone, noting the smirk the spread on Vincent's face. "This comin' from Mr. Black over there?"

Vincent just smiled to himself and chose not to pursue the argument. He picked up another root and held it in his claws quietly, his face sobering.

"I wonder how long it'll be before they come looking for us."

Cid had been reaching for another fruit himself, but at this revelation he jerked sharply. "#$^#! You're right...#$^#, I'm supposed to bring back proof that I killed one of you guys..."

"You could kill me now, if you want." Vincent's voice was soft and expressionless. "I'd rather die by your hand then anyone else's now."

Cid stared at him for a long time, then snatched the root out of Vincent's claws and threw it to one side. Vincent stared at him in shock and found that Cid looked almost hurt.

"#$^# Vin, do you really think that I would do that? Give me SOME credit!"

"That's not what I meant..." Vincent shook his head slowly. "I-"

Cid felt a tingling near the back of his head. "#$^#, Vin, run now, I think someone's coming..."

Vincent stared at him in confusion. "Run...?"

Cid stood up and expanded his wings so that Vincent was hidden from sight. "God#$^#it Vin, listen and run! If they see you you really WILL die!"

He could hear Vincent moving behind him, but he was more concerned with the flashes of color that landed in front of him.

They were tall and thin, almost as if they were nothing but bones and flesh, large feathered wings folded against their backs which were covered with clean white cloth. Cid looked for his spear, but found that one of the new arrivals had taken hold of it. He tried to feign nonchalance while keeping his wings as low as they already where, crossing his arms behind his back and holding onto his wrist.

"What brings a bunch of bird-#$^#ers to visit?" Cid smirked, watching the gathered twitch in unison. The angels were a uptight crowd, they hated insults and almost anyone that didn't meet their standards of perfection. If at all possible, they hated the demons even more then the dragons did, which would be quite an accomplishment considering how powerfully a dragon could hate.

When one finally spoke, his voice was like a musical instrument, pleasant to listen to, although this did not affect Cid any.

"Don't speak such foul words to us, lizard. We're looking for a demon."

"Sorry to disappoint you folks..." Cid reached and pulled a cigarette free from his goggles band, lighting it with a slight cough. "But I ain't no demon."

The lead angel, the only one who had spoken so far, stepped forward, expanding wings that were so brightly white that Cid couldn't help but blink.

God#$^# it, even the angels were taller then him.

"Don't mock us. We know one was here."

"And I know you're all a bunch of feathery-$%^ed #$^#ers, now leave me alone!" Cid was rapidly losing his patience with his last revelation. He wanted to turn, but he didn't want to leave Vincent visible...

The angel walked even closer, so only a few feet remained between him and the dragon. "We're here to do our duty, so if you wouldn't mind getting out of the way and letting us proceed, if your overheated lizard brain could comprehend that-"

Cid did NOT appreciate jokes about fire.

Crouching and expanding his wings fully, Cid removed his cigarette and opened his mouth, releasing a large wash of flame that nearly set the angel on fire. He stumbled backwards, trying to keep the grace he had so far, but was unable to in the face of the raging dragon. The irises of Cid's eyes, if anyone had been inclined to look that close, were now fluctuating rapidly like flames themselves, and when he spoke his forked tongue showed sharply.

"You #$^#in' bird-#$#%ers, get the #$^# away from me before I make some #$^#in' angel flambee, okay?" Cid's voice had lowered sharply and had gotten louder, into almost a full-blown roar. He breathed another jet of flame towards the head angel, who managed to dodge it just barely. They took to the sky, fluttering above in a collection of white.

"You'll pay for this, dragon! We're going to tell your elders about this intrusion into our affair! Demons are our personal enemies, you have no right to-"

"#$^# off!" Cid raised both claws and extended one of his clawed fingers in a universal symbol of defiance. "Tell them THAT too, if you can, bird-#$^#ers!"

The angels flew away in bad grace, and even the area seemed different from their abrupt and upset departure.

"Kay, Vin, I got rid of 'em-" Cid turned around and found only the black bundle, with all the roots removed.

Cid stared for a moment where he was sure Vincent had been, but saw nothing. He even walked and looked behind the tree, but it was as if the demon had never existed.

"#$$^." Cid HAD told him to run, but...somewhere inside him he almost didn't expect him to actually just leave that quickly...

"Eh, it's better this way."

He heard a slight noise behind him and whirled around, ready to fight if the need came.

A band of red cloth fluttered in the wind and came to rest at his feet. With a smile, he used his tail to flick it up into his claws.

"Thanks, Vin. I'll come back, I promise."

There was no response to his words, but somehow Cid knew that he had been heard. Turning, he flapped his wings and took to the air, coasting along easily while making a mental note to come back to this area as soon as possible.

He looked at the bandanna he held in his claws and thought. Using one of his claws, he cut off a short length of it and put it in one of his pockets. Even if he never saw Vincent again, at least he would have this. He knew the elder dragons would take the bandanna away from him once he gave it to them.

This way, he'd always have a little part of Vincent with him, which made him feel better. He'd never have to be alone again.

~~~

The angels were a strange race. 

As long as anyone could remember, there had always been demons. There had always been evil in the world, so there always had to have been demons. Angels, however...

The bird race was unique in the fact that, unlike most other winged races, their wings took the place of their arms. The birds were forced to adapt to using their clawed and hooked feet to get food, or hold things, or other such functions. Birds varied drastically from region to region, from ice-blue feathered ones in the arctics to bright green and yellow ones in the tropics, but the lack of arms was one thing that remained a constant. The hair of birds almost always matched their plumage as well, even down to patterns, so the race with the wildest hair had always been the birds in terms of color. In terms of behavior, their hair was feather soft and light, and always seemed to float when it moved, but it never seemed too radical in terms of hair. The spiked ones always won in that category.

At any rate, the birds themselves were the ultimate survivalists, as shown by their stubborn adaptation to their lack of arms and ability to live almost anywhere, where no other race could live. Legends of birds that could breath underwater were not uncommon, just unproven, but considering the birds fierce desire to live, most would not be surprised. With birds, everything had to be turned and used to help them survive just a little longer.

Therefore, when the first angel was born, a mutant among birds, they used it to help further their races development.

The child was strange to them when he had hatched...he had bright glowing white wings, but his hair was only a pale blond. His skin was white and thin, and he had arms. That was what was the paramount concern of the birds, that the child had arms. They soon turned this to their own advantage, however, and the child was soon made into a lackey. carrying things or getting things for his parents or his parents friend, or just other birds in general. Within him, he felt that he was destined for greater things, and resented being just a tool to such a primitive (in his opinion) race.

Finally, another angel was born, another anomaly, this one female. When he learned of this, the young angel, only a boy, refused to work anymore, flying off to the east swearing that he would never come back. The birds still had their new angel, and all but his parents didn't mourn the loss of the boy.

The girl, when she was old enough, kept asking where her twin had gone, the only other one of her kind. She had heard from people that there had been another one, but she had never seen him. When told that he had left to the east, she left immediately to find him.

By this time, many of the birds were birthing angels, and her loss was not noticed.

This anomaly, which some thought was the evolution of the birds to a higher being, has never been explained. The original angel seemed to only be a fluke, and yet he was followed by so many of his kind around the same period. It seemed to be some kind of fluke, but had the angels would ever admit they had come from birds, they would claim a miracle.

Although the angels had the pure white feathery wings that were impossible to find in any other species, they did not have the power to create miracles, nor had they the glowing rings of light that also characterized what they were believed to be. However, the angels had the demons ironically to prove them, and they convinced all that their miracles could only be seen and used against demons. The angels had power, because of the "threat" of demons, but in the end it was all political. The angels had no magical gifts, just as the demons could not create pestilence and death. Both species were aesthetically different, and because of this and the growing prejudice, their temperaments and moral beliefs also changed, when originally they had been so alike.

The angels had stoutly denied ever having descended from any other race, claiming their existence was proof that the demons should be destroyed. Any other stories, such as the truth of the birds, or the Bird's Accident Theory as it was commonly known, were vehemently denied by the angels, who claimed such blasphemous accounts could only come from the foul mouths of demons. 

If demons had a story, they never had told it and no one had ever bothered to even research. A demon is a demon. The truth about them was unknown, and at the rate their species was disintegrating, it was going to remain that way.

~~~

Cid returned to his town, wondering whether the elders believed that he had truly passed away. When he landed, he noted there was more then the usual share of odd looks and angry glances. Shrugging, he wrapped the bandanna around his own goggles band, smirking as he tried to imagine what Vincent would say.

Cid had never found anyone that seemed to reach him as Vincent had. Every member of his species had completely rejected him, left him to fend for himself because he acted as he believed was right. He never understood why they did this to him and harbored a distinct dislike towards other dragons that he kept well concealed. But in his heart, Cid had always been alone, even when he was only a little one.

Vincent...

Vincent had spoken to him, talked to him, sat with him, and even...

He felt his cheeks heat slightly and he coughed awkwardly. Even fallen asleep with him underneath the tree. Cid had never known that feeling before in his entire life. He had never been able to folic in the clouds or just play with someone. He had never had that freedom around others, always bound by what they believed he should act like. Vincent seemed to set him free, Vincent's presence and soft, red eyes seemed to be so accepting that Cid longed to see them again.

He wished that Vincent was here with him, because even in the midst of so many wings and claws and tails, he felt so alone without the demons presence. He felt so incomplete, as if Vincent was the key to a part of him that he had never known before. 

He had shown more emotion around Vincent then he had to anyone he had ever known, and Vincent had not shied away, only closer. When Cid expected to be pushed away, Vincent gently pulled him into an embrace.

Cid smiled and felt himself blushing slightly again as he thought of how many young couples he had seen in his town who had their tails entertwined. He had always wondered what that felt like, and now he finally knew. Despite the fact that Vincent's tail had not been scaled and he had been frightened that he might have cut it inadvertantly with his own razor scales, he couldn't help but feel a certain sense of fulfillment. He had been so certain that he would never experience that, that he would die alone or in battle, and now...

Now everything was different, because finally he had proved to himself that the elders had been lying to him the entire time. He had known it before, but now he had proof.

Feeling the smoothness of Vincent's bandanna around his head made him feel better. It almost seemed to make the nervous flames rising inside him calm a little. Harboring such feelings towards a demon he knew meant death, if he was lucky, and torture most likely beforehand. 

He didn't understand why something that made him so happy could be so bad...

He lifted himself into the air and flapped his way into the home of the elder dragons, treading softly on the marble. Another thing he hated about the elder dragons was that they insisted on covering their entire domicile in such fragile things that were obviously not meant for dragon's talons to walk on, but refused to believe such. They kept insisting that dragons had the "control" to walk on such delicate marble or handle small vases, but everyone seemed to know it wasn't true EXCEPT the elders, and the elders did make the rules...

Cid's footclaws made hollow tapping noises against the marble of the great hall, which expanded overhead for some time. Another reason he hated marble...it gave him away.

"Enter, Highwind."

Cid felt a shiver rise along the spines on his tail. He was so used to hearing Vincent say that as his name now...it felt very wrong to have someone else refer to him in that way. He sighed, shrugged, and entered the hall.

The elders were incredibly picky about how their halls had to be flawless. The walls were made of the exact same marble as the floor, giving an odd impression of their being no floor or walls, just one continous flowing color. Cid stood and waited while the dragons in front of him, all one solid respectable color, like black or red or green, stared at him with their tired eyes critically.

He tapped one of his footclaws, lit a cigarette which was stricly forbidden in this area, and breathed a cloud of smoke.

"I'm back." Cid mentally added "old fogy dragon-#$#%ers." to the end of his sentence, but didn't say it out loud.

The elder dragons didn't seem very happy about his return, just as Cid had expected. A large black dragon had apparently been designated as the speaker, his hair as jet black as the wings that hung somewhat limply from his back. "Have you killed a demon?"

_No I didn't...I think I brought one back to life..._

Cid knew enough to ignore his thoughts. "Yup."

The dragon stared at him critically. "Did you bring proof?"

Cid tried to conceal a sigh as he sadly reached for his headband and undid the bandanna, letting it slide and droop inbetween his claws. He held it out to them.

"The...demon I killed..." Cid almost had to force the words out, struggling to keep his voice from wavering. "He...It wore this in it's hair."

The dragons stared at it in silence for a while, then beckoned for him to bring it to them. Cid complied silently, watching the band of red fabric float through the air to land against the black scales of the lead dragon. He raised the fabric to his nose and sniffed it. Cid almost felt offended that the bandanna was being treated so shamefully.

The black dragon handed the bandanna to the dragon to his left and turned to Cid reluctantly.

"You've done well, Highwind."

Cid smirked and nodded, wishing he could make the painful longing in his heart leave him. He also hoped he had convinced the elders. Noting his tail twitching around rapidly, he put one leg behind the other and stepped harshly on the tip, pinning it. He didn't show any sign of pain, but it stung.

Better then revealing anything...

"However..."

$%$#.

"We've heard reports...." The dragon put the bandanna down on the desk he was sitting behind like it was a dead thing. Cid was glad he had taken a piece of it for himself, he was sure they were going to burn it. "That there's a demon that lives around here, in fact, near the lake."

#%@#!

The black dragon shrugged, which seemed foreign to Cid because of how rigid he had been before. "They are only rumors. I just thought I would like to warn you, since you seem so skilled at destroying demons and it might be something that would interest you."

Cid nodded because he knew his voice would betray him.

"You're dismissed, Highwind."

Cid struggled not to run out of the place completely, letting his tail free from it's confinement, where it stood straight, which was better then the nervous lashing it had been doing before. He walked until he was sure he was out of their sight, then he broke into a full run, diving into the air and spreading his wings so he could coast and try to forget everything except Vincent.

~~~

When he spotted the lack he saw an assortment of colors flashing in the light nearby. With a sinking sensation he realized that the other colors were other dragons, no doubt also warned about the demon in the area and now hoping to kill it to gain prestige.

Cid felt worried for Vincent's safety, and angry that his race could be so short-sighted and so foolish.

Seeing no use in looking near the lake for Vincent, he landed in a clearing in the woods, not sure of where else to look for the demon.

"Vin..." He felt as if he should call for him, but he decided that would only make Vincent more vulnerable. He simply mumbled the word underneath his breath, unable to think of anything he could really do.

He was reaching for his pocket to pull out the small piece of fabric he had put there when he heard rustling behind him.

Whirling around in case of danger, Cid lowered himself, readied his spear, and flared his wings threateningly.

Glowing eyes stared at him from the cover of brush, but they weren't the red he was hoping for. These eyes glew with a light all their own, an eerie greenish-blue light that blinked out of existence before Cid could really examine them.

From above him, a grey shape seemed to flop onto the ground with some kind of awkward grace, pulling itself upwards and staring at him with confidence and security, arms folded across it's chest.

"#$^#, a cat." Cid put a claw to his hair, scratching his head. He noted again that the feline was taller then he was, but he negated his emotions by noticing that the feline was probably taller then MOST people, even Vincent, so it wasn't far to compare. "Just what I don't need."

The feline's hair flowed gracefully down his back, a shining silvery color that looked almost exactly like the metal. It was so bright at some points that Cid could not stare directly at it and he was having trouble remembering that the reflective surface was true hair. The fact the cats bangs seemed to rest a few inches away and above his face didn't help make it any more believable. The rest of the feline was a pure smooth grey, almost the same shade as is hair excepting that the harshness and reflectiveness was gone, instead replaced with a softness and gentleness that seemed to hide a strong, able frame. The only place where the perfect shade of grey was altered was what appeared to be a large white blotch in the felines fur that traveled down his back, looking like a feathered wing folded against him. Other then that, the feline was a disturbingly smooth grey color, excepting the glowing green eyes that stared at Cid directly, slitted pupils never wavering. A confident smirk hovered around his whiskered face as the long tail waved slowly behind him. He was completely unclothed, as it was common knowledge that felines rejected all forms of clothing on the principle that shame was a weak, foolish emotion, and clothes only furthered it.

Cid was wary. The feline race was not known for their honesty or their tales that involved the entire truth. They would manipulate truth either to further their own ends or for their own amusement. It was commonly believed that felines had no real morals or could ever be trusted to have any deep emotions, but many disliked the felines because it was commonly believed that at the source of every war, there was a feline that was responsible.

"I don't believe we've met." The feline's voice was confident and strong, and held an air of mystery to it that only it's race could ever acquire. "In terms of exchanging names, anyway..."

"What the #$^# do you want?" Cid relaxed but kept his spear in his claws as he sat down on a nearby rock, watching the feline carefully. He didn't trust them, their race wasn't one to be trusted easily, and he wasn't going to let down his guard now. Felines rarely associated in groups, but he wasn't going to let himself be attacked from behind. He kept himself alert.

The feline seemed to ignore his ingracious reply, bowing so that the silvery strands of his hair fell over his shoulders. "I am Sephiroth." He extended a soft looking paw towards Cid, who was not foolish enough to take it. "And you are...?"

"Cid Highwind, though I don't know why the #$^# if matters to you." Cid coughed and tried to conceal the nervous flame that flickered from his breath for a moment.

Sephiroth turned around, his hair still mostly resting on his shoulder, so that the marking on his back was clearly visible. Cid couldn't help but wonder why such a marking had found it's way onto such a silver being.

Which made him wonder why the feline was silver in the first place. That color couldn't be helpful to survival...

"Oh, your name means something to me...now I have something to attach it to."

Cid stared at the feline quizzically.

"What the #$^# are you talkin' about, cat?"

Sephiroth turned and smiled, his eyes narrowing and glowing even brighter then before. Cid was taken aback by what appeared to be sheer malice on the feline's face.

"You and Vincent of course."

"#$^#!" Cid lept to his feet in alarm. "How do you..."

"Oh please..." Sephiroth brushed off Cid's anger like it was nothing, maintaining a deep air of confidence in the face of Cid's fearful anger. "You weren't really trying to hide...you were sleeping out in the open. Anyone could have seen you."

Cid looked down, not sure of what to think.

"Now that I know your name..." Sephiroth put one his paws near his face, smirking. "I know who to blame for this..."

"#$^#..." Cid lowered himself down to his knees, his mind thumping painfully. This was it, because of a stupid #$^#in' mistake, he was goin' to die..."#$^#..."

When Cid looked up, freeing his face from his clawed hands, he found Sephiroth was kneeling in front of him staring into his eyes. "I never said I was going to tell anyone."

Cid stared at Sephiroth in disbelief. "What the #$#%? You don't get nothin' if you don't tell anyone!"

Sephiroth sat back, seeming to enjoy Cid's distrust and anxiety. "I never said I was against the two of you being together." At the sight of Cid opening his mouth, Sephiroth raised one of his paws again. "Never said I was for it either. We've always been neutral, that's what we are." Sephiroth was resting his paw against his chest at this point.

"Now listen. I have not decided whether I'm going to tell someone about this. I have decided one thing."

Sephiroth stood up, closing his eyes for a moment. Cid could almost sense the lack of light. "I can tell you where Vincent will be hiding, now that the lake is being dredged." 


	3. Heaven's Aura

"You can?" Cid stood eagerly. "Where is he?"

Sephiroth opened his eyes and looked off to one side. "There's a rock formation some distance to the west of here. That's all I will say."

"Thanks, Seph." Cid gave the feline a grudging smile. "How do you know Vin, anyway?"

Sephiroth paused for some time, then closed his eyes. The silver strands of hair all seemed to hover for a moment, then Sephiroth opened his eyes again.

"Oh, I have my ways..."

When the feline turned, Cid could clearly see that one true wing now came out of Sephiroth's back in the place of the marking. The pure white of the one wing was the same shade as the angels he had seen earlier, and Cid was overwhelemed with confusion and conflicting messages. A feather fell from the one wing near his talons, and Sephiroth disappeared into the brush.

"Wait! Wait! Get back here! Hey! I'm talkin' to you, #$^$#^!" Cid shouted angrily, but Sephiroth was gone, as if nothing had ever happened. Annoyed and confused, Cid picked up the feather and turned it around in his claws.

"Somethin' real #$^#ed up is goin' on here..." He looked back at where the feline had disappeared. "Cats don't got wings."

~~~

Cid followed Sephiroth's directions, not sure of what else he could really do. He wanted...

He thought deeply and paused. He _needed_ to see Vincent again...he just didn't feel safe or complete without him...

He missed him...

The cynic that usually inhabited his mind and his tongue began to speak again. 

Since when have you been so weak to need someone else like this, Highwind? I thought you could handle yourself...

The problem wasn't whether he could handle himself...he was worried for Vincent...

He found the rock pinnacle, a large collection of stones piled near eachother, forming an awkward kind of tower. He stared up, not sure of what to expect.

From a small hole between two rocks, two flashing rubys blinked at him.

"Highwind...?"

From what seemed to be an impossibly small hole, Vincent extracted himself easily, smiling at Cid with the most relief and happiness he had ever seen. The demon's black hair fell around his face wildly now without the bandanna to hold it back into place, but Vincent didn't seem to notice.

What Cid noticed however were the long scars, new scars, that had now been added to Vincent's chest.

"Hi, Vin." Cid smiled awkwardly, hiding his concern although he felt fire rising in him at the thought of the person who had done something like that to him, and walked towards him. "You okay?"

"What brought you back? Why did you come and look for me? How did you find me?" Vincent took Cid's scaled hands in his own, somewhat awkwardly and hesitantly. Although Vincent's voice was soft and quiet, the questions came quickly, something that Cid wasn't used to the demon doing.

"I...had some help." Cid smiled again, trying to keep his emotions quiet. "Doesn't matter now though, right?"

They stared at eachother for some time, only the twitching of both tails revealing anything.

Vincent abruptly pulled Cid into a fierce hug, holding him and shaking convulsively. Although Cid had wanted to do the same thing, but he had been too frightened that Vincent would push him away. Now that Vincent had made the first move, he had an excuse, and he took hold of Vincent himself.

"You came back for me...you really came back to me...I was so frightened without you..."

"Shh, it's okay, Vin..." Cid was shaking himself, trying hard to keep his tail from thumping against the ground in nervousness. "I'll always come back for you..."

"This isn't safe for us though..." Vincent moved backwards, stepping slowly so that Cid could follow him. "This entire thing isn't safe, but it's not safe here either..."

With a smooth motion and grace, Vincent and Cid managed to find their way back to the small area in the rock tower where Vincent had been hiding before. Cid was surprised to find that the area inside the rock was larger then he had guessed from the opening.

Vincent was still holding him, and Cid could not make himself let go.

"Why did you come back...?" Vincent sounded sad and confused. Cid wasn't sure how to respond.

"I had to...I wanted to be with you again...what happened, Vin...?"  
Vincent shivered in Cid's arms and Cid responded, not sure of what else to do. "I...came back...late..."

"Those #$^#ers." Cid snarled underneath his breath, feeling the rage that he should feel for all demons coming forth towards those that had hurt Vincent. "How dare they..."

Vincent pulled back and looked at Cid. "Highwind..."

Cid looked at him in confusion. "Hn?"

"Your eyes..."

"What about them?" Cid self-consciously raised a claw towards his eye, but didn't feel anything strange around it. Vincent shook his head at the movement.

"They're...glowing..."

"Oh..." Cid smiled nervously and he watched the glow fade. "That happens when the fire starts buildin' up inside...it's no big deal..."

He could tell by Vincent's confused expression that he should continue. He didn't feel comfortable in the silence, so this was fine by him. "All us drags got the fire inside, right? That's how we breathe fire and stuff."

"Where...?" Vincent blinked at him. Cid seemed confused at the question at first, then realized that Vincent most likely knew nothing about dragons, considering where he had been and what they had told him.  
Cid pointed to the center of his chest. "Somewhere in here, I think. They say it comes from our 'burnin' hearts', but I think that's just #$^#. Somewhere..."

Cid paused when Vincent raised his clawed hand and gently rested it on Cid's chest. Cid stopped breathing even, not sure of what Vincent wanted.

"You're right..." His soft voice finally broke the awkward silence. "It does feel warm..."

#$^#, I am NOT blushing...Cid thought angrily to himself. You're god$%#$ lucky it's dark in here.

"Yeah, it does that." Cid laughed awkwardly as Vincent moved his hand back to where it had been before, resting on his metallic arm. "The eye thin' is just the flames comin' out a different way, really. It's a drag thin'."

Vincent nodded. "Dragons...only breathe fire...when they're angry, right...?"

Cid paused, not sure of what he meant, then shrugged. "Well, we only breathe fire or charge up fire when we're emotional really."

"You aren't...angry at me...are you...?" Vincent's voice became lost and frightened. Cid shook his head vigorously and searched for Vincent's claws, finally taking them in his own.

"No, Vin, $^$# no, I'm mad 'cause they hurt you, that's all."

His eyes were still flickering with his inner fire that had not died, due to the emotions that were raging around in him barely controlled or concealed now. The light of his own eyes reflected softly in Vincent's eyes, which turned away from him, almost like in shame.

"They always hurt me...now they just had an excuse..." Vincent's voice was so soft, but now was shaky. Cid could tell he was trying to keep himself silent, to not betray how hurt he was. He knew because he had used that tone himself.

"C'mon Vin, don't be like that..." Cid wasn't sure of how to respond. "I'm sorry I got you in trouble..."

"Highwind..." Vincent stared down into his sapphire eyes, which caused flickering light to catch on the unshed tears in the demon's eyes. "Highwind, you're the only thing that matters to me now, I'd go through anything to be with you..."

"I am?" Cid cursed his stupid reply, not sure of what else he could really say. "I mean..."

"I never knew..." Vincent closed his eyes for a moment, apparently thinking about what he was saying. "I never knew...I never knew kindness before...not even from my own species, and now that you've shown me kindness...I can't go back to what I was before..."

Cid nodded slowly. "I know what you're talkin' about exactly, Vin. I've never met anyone like you before...now I feel like..."

Cid blushed slightly and looked away. "Like I couldn't really live without you..."

He looked back at Vincent and found him smiling. "What?"

"Your eyes...they're glowing again."

Cid self-consciously turned his eyes downward, trying to think of what to say. "Y'know, Vin..."

"Yes?"

"I'm..." This had always been hard for him to say. "I'm sorry for scarin' you before..."

"Scaring...?" Vincent blinked once then nodded silently. The air in the small cave they were sharing was heating rapidly with their breath and body heat, and again Cid could see through the corner of his eye that the sun was beginning to set. It made sense that Vincent only appeared near night, considering what he was...

Who he was.

"It was my fault for being afraid, Highwind. It's your nature, not who you are." Vincent smiled slightly. "I'm afraid I might not be making sense. But being a dragon isn't who you are. I know that now, but...it's hard to get over that fear...it's been..."

Vincent paused. "It's been driven into us...demons for a long time...it's hard to overcome..."

Cid stared at Vin, noting the light that was coming from his eyes, a soft glow that was deep within the scarlet red. Curious, he could not pull his eyes away as he found a question escaping him despite all his attempts to keep it to himself.

"I don't scare you anymore...do I...?"

Vincent paused, then shifted closer to Cid so that he was right next to him, pulling him close and holding him tightly. "I'm as scared of you as you are of me."

Cid wasn't sure what to do and this time he could feel heat rushing to his face as he blushed slightly, his face against Vincent's soft, cool skin. Raising one of his scaled hands, he gently touched where the new scars had been made across the demon's chest.

"Were you frightened then...?"

Vincent shivered slightly, his wings coming forward to obscure him from view, which was a typical response for winged beings. Vincent fought it back and managed to keep his wings were they were. "Who wouldn't be...after all I heard...and after all I knew..."

Cid could feel the fire within him rising even brighter at the thought of someone harming Vincent, but more so at the fact that it was his fault, no matter how many times that Vincent would deny it. If he had...

If he had just...

"There's no right answer to this..." Cid mumbled outloud to himself, holding his forehead. Vincent stared at him.

"There's no right answer to anything. Nothing has any real answer."

Cid stared at Vincent with a slight smirk. "If you weren't like that all the time, I'd consider that a good answer."

Vincent almost looked offended, but instead he turned his head away, staring out of the small cavern they were in. The space was large enough to hold both of them, but not so large that they could avoid touching constantly. They stayed close to eachother without the restriction of space however. As it was, Cid was in front of Vincent, who was leaning on him, the wall on his other side. Cid had only to look over his shoulder to see what Vincent was staring at.

The last rays of light vanished from the horizon, and the howling wind came rushing through the world, driving away all loose and light things.

Safe within their cave, the two watched, both of their eyes glowing softly, as the wind rushed across the opening, causing a strange note to be produced. It seemed to vibrate deep within the dragon, who waited for the wind to stop before breathing again. It was a custom that had been taught to him when he was young and it was too hard to stop now. That the wind was washing away bad air, and to breathe it in transit...

"Night is here again..." Vincent's voice had again taken that emotionless tone that frightened Cid so much. Cid looked at him, but Vincent was staring outside. With light, soft movements of his hands, Vincent leaned over Cid's legs and moved his head closer to the opening. Cid felt heat rushing to his face again as Vincent's hair moved silkily off his bare back onto his shoulders. "And I can sense someone coming..."

"Someone coming?" Cid twitched. He was normally more alert, how could he have not seen someone coming? He had sensed the angels approach...

What had let him be so careless?

He receieved his answer as Vincent moved again, brushing against his legs softly through the dark green fabric. "If we're careful, they won't see us, but..."

"Who is it?" Cid coughed sharply, noting the bright flash of light that came with the small exhalation of flame. Vincent looked at him and he felt embarassed for doing so.

"I'm not sure...but they aren't looking for us, I'm sure..." Vincent had a tinge of worry in his voice. The slightest betrayal of emotion was enough for Cid. "But we had better be careful anyway. Looking for us or not, if they find us..."

Vincent turned towards Cid, fear almost present in his eyes. "Highwind, don't worry. Don't be afraid..."

Before Cid could ask him why, Vincent put his arms on either side of Cid, and his black tail wrapped around Cid's own. Cid was surprised by how strong Vincent was as he lifted Cid slightly, moving him close to the wall so that their chests were touching. He saw a flicker of black blocking out his only light, and he realized that it was Vincent's wings, blocking him from view.

Of course, he was a dragon! In a dark cavern like this, he stood out painfully...that must have been what Vincent was doing...

He realized that the scraping of Vincent's tail against his own scaled one was moving it so that it was hidden behind them, and Vincent's tail settled, blocking Cid's legs from view.

Everything was completly black now, and all light had been blocked by Vincent's wings. Luckily, because of his coloration, the blackness wouldn't be noticed.

Cid stared at Vincent, who had his eyes closed. He almost looked as if he was in pain, and due to the fact their chests were touching and their faces only inches away from eachother, he could sense how fast Vincent was breathing and how his heart was beating so quickly. Thinking to himself, he came to the conclusion that Vincent must have cut himself moving his tail against his, as the scales were definitly being rubbed the wrong way. That must be why he was in so much pain...

Why was he doing the same thing?

"I'm sorry...I have to force this against you..." Vincent's voice was small and weak. He was breathing heavily, as if trying to keep something back. Cid was breathing faster as well, unconsciously matching Vincent's pattern.

"Force what, Vin?" Cid's voice was only a whisper, a slight flame against darkness for a moment. Vin opened his eyes, and they were so full of pain that Cid started, his own eyes beginning to water.

"I'm...forcing my presence...I'm forcing you to touch a demon...this closely...and..." Cid's own eyes were glowing brightly now because of the intensity of emotion he was feeling, and he could see in the reflected pinpoints in darkness Vincent's small fangs. "I shouldn't do this..."

"Vin..." Cid now felt fear rising in his chest as he could finally hear the footsteps that Vincent had been talking about. "Vin, you're everythin' to me. I can't live without you now. I could never hate you."

Cid felt flame in his mouth, which was fortunately protected against his own heat. In the flickering light from his eyes, he could see Vincent close his eyes, the emotion on his face so apparent. It was relief.

Cid saw something glimmer near Vincent's face, and saw a small droplet form near the corner of his eyes fall. Against his blue shirt, it made a dark purple stain.

"Highwind..."

"Vin...don't cry..." With those words choking out of his system, Cid couldn't restrain his own tears. They slide down his face and mingled with the red drop that had already fallen. Cid let loose a small sob, and the footsteps outside stopped. Both of them tightened their muscles in fear, but the dragon couldn't help himself. Tears began to fall without control, only now without noise.

"Vin, god#$^# it...I've been so god#$#% lonely for all my life and now...now...you're here..."

He opened his eyes and found that Vincent had red streaks running down his face, his eyes matching Cid's perfectly. The demon was crying blood.

"I can't leave you."

Vincent shivered, he could feel his whole body shaking against his own as he struggled to keep silent as the footsteps walked slowly outside, slowly fading.

"You...are everything to me..." Vincent's voice broke softly in his whisper, but he tried to conceal it. "You don't know how much I've been through, searching for this kind of...I've been..."

"I was made a demon because of false love...and I've been alone as long as you have..."

"Vin..." Cid stared up at him, not sure of what effect what he was going to do would have. If Vincent killed him, so be it. At least he would have his memories...

"Highwind..." Vincent shivered inside because he was frightened. He knew what he had to do, to prove this. He had to prove this...but he was frightened that he would not be recieved well...but he had to take that chance, that was his species way...

Cid leaned his face upwards, and Vincent moved forward, and the two of them met, kissing with a fervant desperation.

The shock of surprise was palpable by both of them at the other's action, but it soon passed, just leaving the two of them, connected, the dragon's and demon's tears running together.

Within moments, a soft light began to glow from within them as the pent-up emotions and frustrations that they had had for so long passed from one to another through their contact. Feelings, memories, pain, joy, loneliness, loss, everything was shared in that moment, which culminated with the ecstacy of acceptance.

Of love.

There seemed to be an explosion overhead, and the rhythmic pounding of rain came through, pattering with the strength that only such storms knew. When it rained, it rained hard and it rained fast, and there was no pause. The thunder exploded overhead once more as the two arched against eachother, still in contact, emotions flowing with such power after being held back for so long. The walls had been broken, and everything was now gone.

For moment neither saw nothing, only felt, as whiteness overtook both their vision.

The footsteps were gone, but as they slowly broke contact, the soft light dwindled until it was almost imperceptible. Staring at eachother, they breathed in unison, not sure of how to react. They had stopped crying, both of them had.

"Vin..."

"Highwind...is this...?" Vincent looked at his claws for a moment, the white aura more perceptible around his black skin. It was soft and was fading slowly.

"This is...holy #$^#, Vin..." Cid was staring at his own claws, which reflected the light with more gusto then Vincent's. "This is...this is $%^#in' Heaven's Aura."

"But..." Vincent shook his head slowly, his hair floating along with his movement. "That can't be right. We...we're not even the same species...that can't be..."

"$%&# species, Vin..." Cid moved his claws so they wrapped around the larger demon's back. "We're the #$^#in' same and you know it, you felt it too...that only happens with people who really belong together..."

Vincent's tail was trying not to move, but Cid could feel it brushing against his leg, desperately searching for the other tail for it to wrap around as it felt it should. With tailed beings, this level of emotion, this kind of emotion, called for the tail to be wrapped around something, whether the partners leg but more preferably the twin tail. Being deprived of that ws making Vincent's tail move slightly, but quickly. Cid's tail felt the same need, and the scales scraped against the ground softly as it lashed back and forth, Cid trying desperatly to control it. Vincent seemed to have more control over it then he did at the moment.

"Forgive me..." Vincent's voice was soft, but not weak or frightened or sad as before. It was different, confident, but wary. Cid could feel the soft breath touch his face.

"What the #$^# for..." Cid's voice wasn't angry, but he knew was Vincent was asking. Both of them were twitching sharply, their bodies wanting to fulfill what their instincts told them to, but the fear, the thought of it, kept them from doing so, and the tension was building.

Again their lips met, and again the emotions flowed between the two easily, naturally, like there had never been barriers in the first place. Because so much had been released before, there was no pain along with happiness, only the soft pleasure that was comforting, that was safe, something which both had been searching for for so long.  
The emotion heightened everything, heightened their sense of touch, as Vincent pulled at Cid's shirt, his claws gently touching his skin, and trembles of emotion flickered through the bond they shared.   
They were completely one. Their minds were one, and nothing mattered but them, but them and where they were, not the rain, not the wind, not the sun, nothing. They were eachother. They could never have asked for anything more.

Outside, two figures could be seen, one walking away from the clearing, having gone some distance, and one figure hovering above him, flapping yellow feathered wings instead of arms, sheltering the figure below him from the rain.

"I think I heard something..." The bird said softly. The hedgehog underneath him smiled.

"I didn't hear it, but I felt it in the ground." He ran some claws through his black headspikes. "I felt it, and it was definitly love. The real deal kind of thing."

"You think so, Zack?"

"Sure, I've felt it before." Zack smiled up at the blond bird, who blushed and looked away. "C'mon Cloud, I think there's shelter over here."

~~~

The Heaven's Aura was generally believed by a cynical populace to be a myth, a legend to go along with dead heros and mystical artifacts. Through each species hystery, the Heaven's Aura had appeared at points, rare and inbetween, yet indeniably in every race's experience. In each the description and the requirements were the same, thus proving it wasn't just one species ability, but something every species posessed. But the rarity of the phenomenon had made it become legend, something everyone knew about but no one could ever hope to achieve.

The Heaven's Aura belonged only to love, and could only be achieved through it. Love that was so strong that the two people became one, love so strong that one was willing to die for the other, one so strong that they could not live alone, one so strong that it became all that mattered to them in their life, that the other's happiness was the only concern they could ever have...the strongest and most powerful, the most deserved and appreciated. To those who never thought they deserved love, to those who needed it the most, to those who had never known the warmth that can only come from such love...

Heaven's Aura was a visible manifestation of the joy, the specialness, the wonder that came with such love, such pure and undying devotion. The white aura made whoever had it glow softly with a gentle white light, which was hard to see in the daytime, but easy to see at night. Clothes were useless, as it didn't come from one's skin, but the very air around the person reacting to their soul's power.

It was so rare, that when it was seen it was rarely believed, and to have it be seen meant that someone had found perfect love, had found the person they belonged with for the rest of their lives.

Heaven's Aura had no preference, no knowledge of how it could ruin things. It simply stated to the world their love, and didn't care if that could hurt who it fell upon. 

Heaven's Aura had been bestowed on so many historic and imporant couples across species, it always fell on their greatest hero. Who he loved changed for each species, but it was almost always the opposite sex and within the species. It was generally unknown about the spiked one's great hero, but the spiked ones rarely said anything about anything.

But Heaven's Aura was reserved for those who had deserved it through great deeds and suffering, in the eyes of those who had heard the legends, those who had sacrificed themselves to save their country or their species. It was not common, or just a sign of any love, or anything.

Love of that kind was so rare, so strange, that Heaven's Aura had all but disappeared, and to have it was unbelievable. The very presence, if believed, was enough to elevate the couple to high places of power, to places of honor.

Almost no modern couples ever achieved Heaven's Aura. It was something reserved for gods and heros, not the common folk that now lived without any guidance.

The fact that Cid and Vincent were now both afflicted with the aura, which was undeniable, was not going to be easy to explain.

~~~

There was a particular female dragon that liked to follow Cid around, much like, in his opinion, a lost hatchling. Although hatchlings weren't inclined to nag your ears off about everything you did. Which was the problem that Cid suffered.

He had a home, but it might as well have been hers as well for all the time she spent there, cleaning and fixing everything, organizing things, and nagging him. He found that he always smoked more when he was at home with her then anywhere else, because the chemicals helped calm him down in her presence and stop him from outright attacking her to stop her venemous toungue.

Cid had no patience. He knew that. He was surprised that she didn't. But she didn't know a lot of things, although she liked to think she did.

Cid snuck back into where he lived, trying to avoid everyone. He didn't want people to see he was glowing this way, and he didn't want people asking him why. He REALLY didn't want anyone to smell his clothes before he could wash them and himself. If he had smelled vaguely of demons before, he smelled entirely of them now. He couldn't let anyone know.

He managed to make it back to his house safely without anyone seeing him by timing his arrival carefully. The least dragons were about near the high-noon times, when the sun beat down on the earth viciously. With that much heat and light reflecting off the dragons, it was a hazard to look at them and dangerous as well, as touching one could result in severe burns, even from other dragons. Not many people went about at this time more to save themselves the trouble then out of consideration for others.

Cid may have been obvious at this time, but the sun reflecting off of him hid the glow rather well and kept others away from him, something that he wanted.

He opened the door to his house carefully and crept in, locking the door behind him. Breathing out a sigh of relief, he looked down at his claws and noted the soft white glow that continued to play off his marbled scales.

"#$^#." He mumbled to himself. He sniffed the back of his claws carefully and was surprised by just how little he smelled like himself. It was almost as if he had taken Vincent's scent completely...

He headed for the bathroom, rubbing the back of his head awkwardly as he tried to stay calm. No one had seen him, so this wasn't a problem yet...

"Captain!"

"#$^#!" Cid bolted for the bathroom door quickly, his claws scrabbling over the doorknob as he locked himself inside, hearing the scraping of claws outside trying to open it.

"I saw you go in here! What was that about? Why did you get here so late?"

Cid secured the door with a stool then headed for the shower, calling behind him irritably. "#$^# off! I don't have time to talk to you!"

"Why do you smell strange? Get back out here so I can talk to you!"

"I said #$^% off!" Cid snarled angrily, flames hissing between his fangs. "I'll talk to you LATER, #$^#@!"

He heard her storm off angrily, and he sighed, wishing that he wouldn't let himself get worked up this way. He went to the shower stall and turned the knobs carefully, so that the steam that came out of the nozzles was not to warm. The threat of direct water down one's throat was a big concern for dragons, who believed their inner fires belied their own life. To have one's extinguished meant instant death. So steam showers, a safer alternative, was introduced and kept ever since, as steam couldn't hurt their inner fire unless they really tried to. And it worked just as well anyway, if only slower.

Cid shed his shirt and his pants, tossing his goggles on top of them carelessly. The pack of cigarettes that he commonly kept in there was now gone, given as a gift to Vincent before he left, to remember him by. Although there were many ways that he knew Vincent now could never forget him...

He stepped in, noting the scales on his feet gripping the floor easily. The substance on the floors of stalls was something that scales were meant to grip, which meant slipping was very difficult. Cid preferred this greatly over the marble the elders were so fond of.

It took some time until the steam was able to smooth down his hair and even longer until his hair was wet enough to wash, but he waited. It took ages for a dragon to shower this way, but it was the safest way. Cid personally would have preferred the lake, but there were still far too many other people there searching for his demon.

His demon...

Cid sighed and worked his claws into his hair, wondering if he could really get rid of the stubborn smell. His claws and feet were lingering, although the rest of his body had given up trying to retain the smell. He felt a kind of sadness as it left. The smell was now associated with happiness, with calm, with peace, with...

His horns were now easily visible, the protective covering of his hair and his goggles gone. He ran his scaled hands over them softly.

His horns SHOULD be longer...HER horns were. He scowled to himself and began washing himself even more thoroughly, hoping that he could get rid of every trace of evidence. She couldn't know, she would never understand.

His tail curled around one his legs. He knew it missed it's black counterparts presence, and he let it cling. He missed his own black counterparts presence as well.

It took a great deal of effort and soap until he was able to completely dislodge the smell. He now smelled like flowers, something which bothered him. The minute he left the shower and began to towel himself down, he lit himself another cigarette, to let that familiar smell mask his own. He sniffed the back of his hand again, and found that underneath everything, there was the faint remnants of Vincent's scent hiding underneath his own. 

He sighed as he doubted that he would ever get rid of the smell permanently. Just as he would never truly get rid of this glow. It haunted him even as he put on a fresh shirt and pants, hiding his old ones deep in one of the hampers. He'd find them and wash them later, when he got rid of her.

He opened the door and she sat on the couch, glaring at him. 


	4. Shera and Sephiroth

"Alright, what happened?"

"God#$^# it, Shera, don't you have somewhere else you have to be?" Cid snorted angrily and headed for the kitchen, knowing by her footsteps after him that she was following.

Shera's brown hair swept around her as she tried to circle him, trying to face him, but Cid continually turned away from her, getting more and more frustrated every time. Even she was taller then him, if only by a small fraction.

"Why won't you tell me? What's wrong?"

"Nothin'." Cid fixed himself something, trying to ignore her prodding claws and probing questions. She was predominantly silver in color, a common color considering dragons. Metallics such as gold, silver, or bronze were nothing to be proud of. Metallic greens or blues were rare, but to have both at once was exceptionally so, thus why Cid had so much trouble hiding. The aura wasn't helping. "Stop botherin' me."

"Don't hide things from me!" She put her hands on her hips. "Why are you glowing like that?"

Cid was suddenly filled with burning rage. He had prepared himself for people asking him this in his mind, but nothing compared to actually being asked that. He took the utensil he was using and slammed it point first into the counter, causing it to crack and the utensil to break off midway. "God #@#@ it, Shera, shut the $@#$ UP!"

Despite the fact that now every exhaling breath Cid made contained traces of flame, Shera refused to back away. "What is that? Why won't you tell me? That isn't what I think it is, is it?"

"No it #$^#in' isn't." Cid angrily continued what he had been doing, trying to lose himself in the repetitive motions of cooking. "That #$^#in' aura or whatever it's called doesn't exist, so get the #$^# off my back, okay?"

"That has to be it, it won't go away." Shera moved her claws along the edge of the aura, noting how it seemed to dodge around her claws. "Who did you fall in love with? Who?"

"What #$^#in' business of it is yours anyway, Shera." The cooking wasn't working. Cid's claws were trembling in anger.

"Well, it wasn't me." Shera's voice was acid, her entire speech pattern mocking Cid's completly. "Even after all the #$^# I put up with for you. Who's the little slut, hmm? Who's the whore that stole your poisoned heart?"

"God#$^#in' #&#%IT SHERA!" Cid shouted, flame coming from his mouth and washing over his own scaled hands, which were fortunately protected. He whirled on her, glaring at her in fury. "What the #$^# do YOU know about anythin' ANYway?"

"I know more then you say!" She glared at him as well, refusing to back down. "I can smell someone else on you, I don't know who! I know that glow only comes from one thing, and it's not me!"

"#$^#, of course it isn't you, you're a #$#^in' #$^#^!" Cid shouted angrily and threw the dishcloth he was using to the ground, walking away from her. She followed him angrily.

"What did you call me?!"

"What you #$%^in' ARE! Now get AWAY from me!"

"You turn and face me RIGHT NOW and say that to me!"

Cid did so, glaring at her, his wings completly expanded and his tail shaking with anger. "You, Shera, are a #$#^in' naggy #$^#^! So #$^#in' there!"

The glint in her eye told Cid to back away and prepare himself, and he was wise to do so. Shera breathed a torrent of flame on him, which he used his wings to block, the scales of a dragon particularly evolved for the purpose of deflecting fire. He waited until she paused for breath then sprinted for the door to his own house, not able to stay there while she was in the room.

"Don't run away from me!"

"#$^# you!" Cid turned and flipped her off angrily, backing out of the door. "Burn in #$%@!"

"Fine!" Shera shouted at him as began flapping his wings to take off. "Fine, go run to your cheap whore! See if I care!"

"Shera, I wouldn't give a $^#%in' #$^# if you did anyway!" Cid snarled at her and took off, taking to the sky, pumping his wings faster and faster so that no one would see his aura.

~~~

Vincent wandered, alone.

Going back to his hometown in this state would be foolish and deadly. They knew what this aura was and they would kill him for it, because it was so painfully obvious among demons who had it due to their dark black colors, and they weren't so trusting of the lies of legendary heros being the only ones to have a special condition. After all, all the legends were in the end false, once told from the demon's point of view, but the existence of Heaven's Aura was known to at least be true, and it was believed among them, even if not among other races. To go back now, especially after they had made him promise to stay...

He was hiding, his scarred bare back to a tree, holding a small crumpled box in his claws gently, a deep pang in his heart. He gently touched the scars on his chest, flinching slightly at the tingling pain that came from his own tainted claws.

They had beaten and slashed him rather badly as warning after he refused to tell them where he was and who he had been with (they could smell someone on him, but Vincent had the foresight to wash himself off well before heading off). Even after the increased pain of torture, he refused to speak Highwind's name, not one syllable escaped him, no matter what they did to him. Eventually they gave up, and they made him promise to stay, to not go out, and tried to put him under guard...to keep him a prisoner in his own house...

But nothing could keep him away, nothing could keep him from seeing his dragon again...he had too, there was nothing else in his life that meant anything to him now. So he escaped, even after threat of death...

Highwind could at least go back to his home and try to hide there...now Vincent was truly homeless and truly alone without the dragon's comfort.

He shivered in the wind and held his wings closer around his body to try and shelter it. Was there a wind or was he just imagining one in desperation? The wind to him was soothing now, it meant safety, it meant protection, it meant love. He now associated the wind with him, because they always seemed to meet at dusk or dawn, just before the night gave way to light, or the dark gave way to day. It was appropriate, but unintentional.

To go home meant death...to stay here meant death...even to seek refuge in Highwind's arms meant death for him...everywhere he was surrounded by death...

He put a claw on his forehead. No wonder everyone seemed to associate demons with death...

He sighed, wondering about his train of thoughts, letting them go down a more morbid trail as he sometimes felt like doing. He was still a demon, and their thoughts tended towards the dark. 

At least he would know if Highwind ever died...an innate ability of demons was to sense death, who it was and why. This was part of why they were believed to be so evil. They had to take the message to those who would be affected, because they were the only ones who knew the true story. Messages are so easily mixed...it didn't take long before messengers were made into perpetrators. The angels were all too ready to perpetrate this lie.

Angels...

He sighed very deeply as he thought of her, her dark brown hair, her eyes, her ears, her whiskers...

He stared back down at his claws, noting the soft white glow that reflected off his metallic arm. This glow had not shown up when he loved her, but that had never surprised him. Back then, he thought that such a forbidden romance between species could never generate that glow. He thought that it was the providence of legend...

And now...to think of Highwind made his heart ache for him, and to see the glow made him wish to see him again. The glow meant he was now doomed for sure, but he was proud of it somewhere....

He shook his head, watching his black hair float by. Love had reminded him of what had happened...Highwind must now also know of how he became a demon...the shameful way how he had fallen to this horrible status...all because of them...them...

"You can never stay out of trouble can you, Valentine?"

Vincent whirled around, flaring his wings in alarm and looking about wildly. A lone white feather fell from the tree above him, and he relaxed his pose slightly.

"You're a constant reminder of what I've done wrong in my life." Vincent turned his back, putting the empty cigarette box in his pocket and sighing as he brushed his hair back behind his horns. His bandanna did serve a purpose, even if some strands always escaped. He reminded himself to make another one. "Why do you always haunt me?"

He held onto his elbows as he heard a slight rustle behind him. Just as he expected, when he turned the feline was sitting at ease, one white wing curled around his body easily. The smirk on his face was more evil then Vincent could ever hope to be.

"Because you're the reason my life is a disgrace as well. You're lucky I can hide this..." Sephiroth gestured to the wing. "That Mother taught me how, or else you'd be in a lot more trouble."

"I can't see how things could possibly get any worse then this." Vincent sighed deeply and refused to look at him, turning away and sitting against a tree. "If they had killed me off, I never would have caused this much trouble..."

"I'd do it myself..." Sephiroth's voice took on a disturbingly emotionless tone. The feline stood, brushing himself off. "But I'd rather not die anytime soon for murder or for any other reason. I'm afraid I'm stronger then you there..."

A sadistic tone entered his voice. "But then again, I think I'm stronger then you in every way."

Vincent sighed and pushed his claws back into his hair, wishing that the age-old pain in his heart would stay dead. Sephiroth's presence made it flare back to life, even worse then before with the aura to amplify his guilt. "You even sound like her..."

"I'm here, Valentine..." Sephiroth ignored him and extended his claws, retractable ones that only the felines seemed to possess and abuse, and studied them carefully. "Because I know something of interest to you."

"Nothing you say can be trusted." Vincent's voice was beginning to match the feline's in tone, emotionless and unrevealing.

"Well, for instance..." Sephiroth paused. "I know your 'dragon' is coming soon."

Vincent started slightly but tried to hide it. "I should have figured someone would have seen..."

"I have more respect for people's privacy then that." Sephiroth waved his paw. "A little more. It was obvious anyway, he's pretty much the only feasible reason you'd have that glow. And it wasn't like you two were quiet."

"You live to torment me." Vincent turned his face away and kept his voice even to try and hide his blush from him. "What do you want?"

"You said you wanted to die..." Sephiroth fluttered his wing, a smile crossing his face. "I could tell them right now where you've been..."

"No!" Vincent finally turned and faced him, alarmed. "No, please!"

"Finally got a reaction out of you." Sephiroth pointed at him and smirked. Vincent glared at him angrily."I thought you wanted to die."

"I don't want to die now. He's..." Vincent stumbled on his words and fell silent.

"Yeah, I know. The glow and all that. If you don't want me to tell them, I'll tell HIS people then..."

"No! Please..." Vincent tried to control his voice, but his worry and concern was getting the better of him. Both his and his dragon's life were in Sephiroth's paws. And he knew that Sephiroth was going to wring every last bit of enjoyment out of tormenting the two before tossing them away like a broken toy. That was his way that Vincent knew far too well. "Please don't..."

"Don't get so worked up." Sephiroth smirked as he watched Vincent try and control his emotions. "I won't do anything about this yet. It's amusing, in a strange way, to watch you two try to figure out love..."

"Like you know anything of love." Vincent's words were laced with venom and he noticed Sephiroth's eyes narrowing. The feline stood and began walking away.

"Just know that I'm there. That'll be enough for now."

He disappeared in front of Vincent's eyes, but the demon was used to that by now. Feline tricks...he had seen and been on the recieving end of far too many of them in his lifetime.

He sighed deeply as he returned to where he had been sitting before, the worry that had been hovering over him now increasing exponentially. His life, but more importantly that of his dragons, were in the feline's paws...and there was nothing he could do. He was trapped...

He was always so trapped...

He leaned against the tree and closed his eyes, not sure of what he to do. He didn't know what to say, if Highwind should come back...

He kept feeling doubt. He didn't know why Highwind loved him at all...he was a demon, not worthy of love, especially after all that he had done...but...still, the aura proved him wrong. All the doubts in his heart could not make the aura go away, and it meant that Highwind loved him just as much as he loved him back...

No use trying to understand it...all he could do was accept it.

He wondered if Highwind would ever come back to him...and the glow seemed to penetrate even his closed eyes. He knew the answer, deep in his heart, that the two could never truly be apart for long...to be apart was unthinkable now.

So all he could do was wait, wait for him to come back...

Vincent pushed himself back upwards and turned, heading for the rock outcropping where they had hidden during their first night...of...

Highwind would have to find him there...

Or else he was just seeing things...

To Be Continued...


	5. Smuggling

Cid found his own town and his own home more unbearable with every beat of his wings. He was just flying at the moment in one direction, hoping that Shera wasn't following him and trying to blank his mind.

His heart was hurting from her words, although he had tried very hard not to show it. To hear Vincent called those horrible names...it made him angry and sad all at once, so he was confused in a jumble of emotions. He didn't know what to do other then fly.  
He wondered idly if, at the speed he was going across the sky, he was leaving a faint trail of white.

Vincent...

He gently guided himself downwards towards the outcropping of rocks, changing his direction sharply and lingering so as to throw anyone following him off his track. He thought back to his demon and found that his scent seem to flare up from underneath his own at the very thought. He hoped he was okay...that nothing bad had happened to him...that they hadn't hurt him again.

He landed and his claws burned patches of grass clear. The fire within him raged brighter then ever before at the thought of someone harming the demon. He would not allow that anymore...he couldn't let Vincent get hurt like that!

It just wasn't right...

His aura was flaring around him brightly as the fire burned inside his chest, and unable to contain it he breathed a burst of flame into the ground, trying to keep clear from any brush or trees. The grass died instantly, not even remaining enough to flicker as the ashes scattered, Cid standing in the middle of it, breathing heavily, trying to get his breath back after releasing so much flame. He sank to his knees, closing his eyes and trying to keep himself calm.

So much anger and helpless rage that had nowhere else to go...rage at Shera for forcing him out of his own house, rage at the #$#^#@$ who had hurt Vin, rage at the dragons for being so closed-minded, rage at himself for being part of them, rage at himself because he was so weak he couldn't even run his own life...and was chased out of his house by someone that wasn't even related to him...

"Highwind...?" A soft whisper carried in the wind and he rubbed his eyes before turning. He could only see a glimmer of red amidst the darkness of the black rocks and he smiled carelessly.

"Hi Vin." His voice shook, although he tried to keep it calm. Filled with nervous awkward energy, he put his claws in his pockets and walked towards the rocks, wishing he hadn't incinerated his cigarette with the emotional outburst before. "You okay?"

"I'm fine..." Vincent turned to go deeper into the cave, the red disappearing and the black overtaking the opening almost completely. "Are you alright...?"

Cid walked, finding himself shaking despite his best efforts, and laughed nervously as he entered the small cave himself. "Ah, I'm $@#$in' fine."

"Well, I don't know..." Vincent was leaning against one of the walls when Cid finally settled down on the other side, the cave small enough so that their tails were allowed to intertwine without a problem. "You seemed upset just a little before..."

Cid blushed angrily and turned away, scratching the side of his face absently. "Uf, that was nothin', honest. I was jus' kind of frustrated, that's all..."

He turned to see if Vincent would be disapproving of such an emotional outburst. Instead he found Vincent staring at his own black claws.

"If I could breathe fire...I'd be doing the same thing..."

"Really, Vin?"

"Yes..." The demon nodded slowly. "I'm feeling just as frustrated as you...probably for the same reason..."

Cid nodded slightly. "The same reason deep down...that's not all of it tho', but you're right..."

Vincent thought of Sephiroth, and Cid thought of Shera.

"Are you frightened of death...?" Vincent's question seemed out of place and awkward, but Cid took it in stride.

"What d'you mean?"

Vincent looked at his claws and held onto his arms. "They're going to kill us for this...we don't have much longer for this world...I can feel it..."

Cid looked down as well at his own green and blue claws, watching the soft white light refract. He could almost see different colors inside of the refractions, but he wasn't sure. The aura, when he looked at it, fluxed and changed in such a way that it was impossible to pin it down to one extreme or one depth, how bright or how dull. But he always knew it was there, because even when it almost seemed to be gone, there would be a slight flicker, a reflection of one of his scales, that reminded him that he was glowing. He sighed somewhat.

'Well, #$^#,Vin, I mean...we all die sometime...and I'd rather die because of you then of anythin' else..." He coughed slightly. "Besides, I'd probably die soon anyway 'cause I smoke too much..."

Vincent blinked at him, as if this had not occured to him before, which it probably hadn't. The thought of his own addiction killing him bothered Cid a lot. He had never heard of it happening to a dragon, but he knew other species could die from it, and he wasn't sure whether or not it would begin to affect him adversely as well. It was a worry in the back of his mind that he tried very hard to ignore, but he couldn't help but bring it up in the face of talk of death.

"Highwind...I don't want to live without you anymore..." Vincent looked away somewhat awkwardly. "You're the only thing in my life now..."

He closed his eyes and his voice took on a slight shamed tone. "I can never go back home...I never did. After you left I just...waited..."

"You can't go home again...?" Cid leaned forward slightly, confused. Vincent held his arms out, the thin limbs glowing softly.

"Highwind...they beat me before, because I was late...they made me promise not to leave...and now...I can't be rid of your scent, I've been gone for days, I broke my promise...they'd kill me now anyway for disobeying, if not because of you..."

"You...smell like me...?" Cid hadn't been able to tell in the small space where their scents intermingled. Vincent smelled like dusk and loneliness, while Cid smelled of flame and sunrise. When the two scents collided, it was like all times of the day mixed as well, and time itself seemed to warp. It was a pleasant feeling that seemed to last forever, and in such a small space it was impossible to tell which smell came from where.

Vincent nodded in response to his question, and Cid smirked to himself. "Heh, I smell like YOU."

Vincent looked down at himself. "I think it's the aura, actually...look..."

He took hold of one of Cid's claws and ran his own claw downwards, against the flow of Cid's scales. Cid started sharply and took hold of Vincent's claw, lifting it away from him.

"Vin! Don't do that, it'll cut you, you-"

Vincent showed Cid his palm, which was free of any kind of marks at all. Cid looked down at his own claws and saw there was no blood on the edges of his scales. He looked at himself in confusion. "What the..."

"I think the aura also protects me from your scales..." Vincent seemed to smile slightly. "So that I won't hurt myself...I don't think it will let you hurt me."

Cid smiled and shrugged. "Eh, not like I would anyway."

"Watch this..." Vincent took Cid's arm with one claw and poised his other over it. "Do you remember what they say about a demon's claws?"

"Filled with poison and can slice rocks like nothing?" Cid responded automatically, part of what he had been taught as a hatchling. He then coughed awkwardly. "I mean..."

Vincent, instead of looking upset as he had feared, only looked slightly amused. "No, they aren't poison, but they ARE sharp...watch."

He put one of his claws against Cid's skin and slid it downwards with enough pressure to obviously cause damage...

And yet the aura seemed to stop anything from getting through to Cid except a slight tingling.

"That's pretty #$^#in' weird..." Cid took his arm away from Vincent and ran his own claws across where the cut SHOULD have been.

Vincent nodded. "I guess no one ever experimented with it before."

He sighed and leaned back. "Although it doesn't do us much good...our threat is not from eachother, but from those around us..."

"#@%#..." Cid turned his eyes downward and crossed his arms, not sure of what else to do.

Vincent sighed and curled up, pressing his knees against his chest, resting his chin across his arms and letting his tail curl around his footclaws. "I wish we could stay here forever...I wish we didn't have to die..."

Hearing Vincent speak so fatalistically about something that Cid had been trying not to accept caused the dragon to sigh. "Look, Vin, it'll be okay, alright?"

"No it won't..." Vincent lowered his head until his forehead rested against his arms, so that his face was hidden from view. He shook slightly. "It's not going to be okay...it'll never be okay...I have no home, no life, nothing...I can't even have you...and soon I won't even be alive..."

Cid moved so that he was sitting next to the demon and put a claw on his shoulder. "Look, Vin, calm down. I'll think of somethin', I promise." In truth he sounded far more confident then he actually was. He was just as scared as Vincent was, but knew that the last thing that the demon needed right now was someone else to agree with his fears.

"What are we going to do...?"

Cid paused and thought while Vincent's shook underneath his claws. He scratched his head awkwardly.

"Well, first thin's first...you ain't got nowhere to go, right?"

Vincent didn't respond. Cid rubbed his head and felt heat rush to his face as he tried to think of something to say. "Well...#$^#, Vin...you could come stay with me..."

Vincent slowly turned his head and looked at him, his face streaked with blood from his tears. "Stay with you...?"

Cid shrugged and tried to look nonchalant. "Sure, it's no big deal at all. It'll be better for both of us anyway...if I keep comin' out here sooner or later someone's goin' t'follow me an' then..."

"You want me...to stay with you...?" Vincent couldn't understand. Even after everything that Cid had done for him, the offer to live with him, to stay with him...the ultimate in demonic commitment...he was offering him that? He couldn't believe it...this couldn't be real...

Images of Shera flashed through Cid's mind, but he laughed, trying not to think about it. Vincent looked so shaken, he didn't want to bring up unnecessary complications at the moment. "#$^#, why the #$^# not?"

Vincent ran his black claw across his face in an attempt to wipe the tears away, only causing the blood to smear backwards towards his ear. "But...you live with other dragons, Highwind...it won't work..."

He didn't want to impose...

Cid paused. "@#$%, you're right...but I'll think of somethin'. You can trust me, right?" He smiled earnestly at Vincent, who smiled softly back at him. "We just cover you up or somethin' and it'll be fine."

Cid stood and exited the cave, taking his comforting smell and warmth with him. He turned and smiled at the demon. "Stay here, I'll be back soon."

With a flutter of wings, the dragon was gone, and Vincent was alone.

~~~

Please don't be home, please don't be home...

Cid opened the door to his house as quietly as possible, bracing himself for an angry tirade that he knew was coming.

Fortunately, no one came to the door to yell at him. Breathing a slight sigh of relief, he walked over to the coatrack on the wall, looking for one of his larger coats. In the winter, despite their inner fire, dragons still got cold, and their wings were especially subsceptible, which is why several articles of clothing, heavy overcoats and the like, were designed to cover a dragon's wings completely. He took one of his coats and one of his tail-warmers, which was designed with the same purpose as the coats, to keep the tail warm in the cold, and quietly snuck back out of the house, shutting the door behind him and taking to the air, hoping that no one had seen him.

It didn't take him long to make it back to the rock outcropping. He landed near the opening and looked inside, worried that perhaps Vincent had left while he was gone, or had been captured or worse. Fortunately, the ruby eyes were still glinting in the darkness, and turned to see him with genuine relief.

"Where did you go...?" Vincent tried to make his voice emotionless and failed. Cid ducked into the opening and held out the articles of clothing he had retrieved.

"See, look. We can cover up your wings and tail with these. We hide your horns with your hair, keep your claws undercover, an' you can pass for a dragon no problem." Vicnent took the garments of clothing from him gingerly, studying them in confusion.

"What...are these...?"

"It's a coat." Cid cocked his head slightly. "Demons didn't use 'em?"

Vincent shook his head and tried to put the coat on without success. "We just endured..."

Cid walked over to him, taking the coat authoritively and putting the coat over the demons black wings. They were larger then his, but they still fit within the fabric. "See, not too #$^#in' complicated, is it?"

Vincent was able to put on the warmer by himself, and he carefully moved his hair so that his horns were hidden. It didn't take much effort, considering they were rather short.

"This's still goin' t'look kind've weird, 'cause it's not that cold out, but we got a decent chance now." Cid walked back out into the night air, watching Vincent emerge to follow him. "It'll be a #$^# of a walk there, but it's better'n flyin' now."

Vincent nodded, still overwhelmed by what was happening, and the two began walking, Cid close to Vincent's side to make sure the coat and warmer stayed in place. They tried to chat idly during the way, but as they neared the town their voices got more strained and nervous. Vincent's got softer and Cid began to swear more often, but they tried to keep their nervousness under control.

Once the town came into site, Vincent balked.

"Highwind, I can't...I can't, they'll find me, they'll know me, I'm a-"

"Shh!" Cid cut him off. "You're a #$%#in' dragon and that's #^#$in' that, okay Vin?" He stared at him seriously. "You can do it, now shut up an' #%@$."

It took Vincent some effort to move his footclaws forward, but Cid took one of his arms and led him along, refusing to stop. Vincent was nearly dragged along, paralyzed with fear as he entered the city of the people sworn to kill his kind.

Cid was breathing quickly and walking just as fast, mumbling to himself so that Vincent couldn't hear. Vincent couldn't hear much of anything anyway, his heart was pounding in his ears and he heard rushing in his ears. He closed his eyes tightly and clung close to Cid, trusting the dragon to protect him. Without much else of an option, he completely surrendered his fate to Cid, trusting that he would be alright.

They managed to make it to Cid's house without incident and slide inside. Both of them sighed audibly, then heard a slight movement on the couch.

Before Vincent could say anything, Cid put a claw to his lips and dragged Vincent to a closet, opening the door and pushing him inside quickly. Vincent stared at him in confusion, but all the dragon did was signal again for him to be silent. Vincent was left in complete darkness and, still frightened from the entire excursion, curled into the corner, pulling a loose piece of clothing over him in a effort to hide.

"Why are you home so late? What have you been doing?" An angry female voice surprised Vincent, and he twitched. He hadn't expected a voice at all...much less a female one...

"Get the #$^@ out of my house, Shera! I'm not #$^#in' kiddin'!"

"Why are you acting like this? What are you up to?"

There was movement, rapid movement, and Vincent clutched the fabric he was hiding under closer, closing his eyes and trying to keep quiet.

"Get out of my house!"

"No! I refuse! Tell me what's going on!"

"#$^# no! Get OUT!" Cid's voice was strained with frustration. There were sounds of what seemed to be a struggle, and the sound of fire flashing through air.

"Get out! Get out NOW!"

"You're hiding something! I know you are! I KNOW you are! I can smell her on you, she's somewhere in here, isn't she?"

"Shera-"

"Isn't she?!"

"#$^# OFF!"

Vincent cringed against the corner, clutching the fabric close to him and trying to keep his breathing under control. He heard a rush of air and felt the door to the closet open, and he twitched slightly, trying to freeze.

"SHERA! Get the #$^@ away from that!"

"Where is she!?"

There were more sounds of scuffling and the closet door slammed fiercely. The front door opened and there were more sounds of flames, claws scraping on the floor, then the front door slamming. Instantly the sounds of someone pounding on it came to Vincent.

"You let me back in this instant!"

"Get the $@#$ AWAY from me!" There was the sound of the door locking, then some more clicks. The windows.

"You can't keep me away forever!"

"I can sure as #$^# try!"

Slowly the pounding and shouting receded, and he could hear Cid sigh in relief. The closet door opened again, and Cid kneeled, pulling down the fabric that had protected Vincent from Shera's sight.

"You okay?"

"Who was that...?" Vincent's voice shook as he tried to regain his composure. Cid grimaced, his fangs showing slightly.

"Someone I wish would leave me alone. Don't worry, she's gone now."

He held out one of his hands, taking Vincent's and pulling him up. He led Vincent away from the main room and into the bathroom. 

"Just ignore her, she's a #^$#$. It'd probably be best if you stayed quiet durin' the day an' #$^#, y'know..."

Vincent was studying the shower with curiousity. "What is this...?"

"Oh, right. That's 'cause water can kill dragons like that." Cid snapped his claws. "We use steam instead. Takes a #$^#in' long time, but it works."

"Very strange..." Vincent walked into the stall and felt around the entire thing, investigating and apparently commiting it to memory as much as possible. "I've never seen something like this before..."

Cid put his claws in his pockets awkwardly and shrugged. "Well, you can use it if you #$^#in' want to...I'm goin' t'try an' get some sleep...I'm #$#^in' exhausted..." He turned and walked away, his tail still twitching in agitation from his encounter with the other dragon. 


	6. Tifa, Aeris, and Shera

Shera was leaning against one of the walls, her arms crossed, as she stared at the sky. She breathed slowly, attempting to calm her rapidly beating heart. She had not been that upset in some time...p  
She pushed up the small spectacles that adorned her face and brushed some loose strands from her hair. She sighed deeply as she sank to the ground, her arms still crossed against her chest.p  
Why was she the one who had to deal with him? Why had they cursed her, of all people, to deal with such a delinquent dragon?p  
It had started out so simply, so easily. When she was young...her mother had asked her what she had wanted to do with her life. She didn't know. All that she knew about at that period was playing with her friends. Her mother asked her if she wanted love. She was only a girl, of course she said yes. And that was how she sealed her own fate.p  
Shera was not by nature a social person, but she did have friends, a few close friends. Sometimes they were from other species, none as objectionable as say, felines or even, if it was even a possibility, a demon. The dragons, although they had their hideous intolerance of certain races, tried to treat the other races with respect and equality. In a way, they were making progress...in some fields.p  
Shera had grown up with her friends, listening to their stories. They talked of men who used, or abused, or controlled their wives or girlfriends, and how they, she and her friends, would never be so foolish. She had kept those days in her memory, and even now believed that no man should ever think he had control over her, or presume that she would be their servant to make them happy.p  
When she was young, her mother tried to teach her otherwise. But as she reached her adolescence, she found that her mother, her parents, were lying more often and she was more aware, and the things her friends said made more sense...and so she went away, turned away from the path of the silent housewife, and vowed that would never happen to her.p  
She believed strongly in herself as a person. She had deep feelings of confidence that her friends and her family had instilled in her, and she had spent most of her teenage years enjoying herself and her freedom. She learned a lot in those times, and she continued to feel confident, to know she was a worthy person. She knew that she deserved to be LOVED, not used. She KNEW that. And no one, not anyone, could take that from her.p  
But her mother...her mother had changed that. She had never suspected anything, as her mother called her in one day, after Shera had grown and left their house. Her mother told her that was engaged.p  
Shera refused to believe it. She refused to think that such an antique, old custom could still be in effect. She had heard of some older, more respectable dragons, who used such conventions, but she had never thought that she would be roped into it as well. Her mother told her she was engaged. She didn't ask. Shera didn't have a choice.p  
She had to meet him, that blue-green dragon that she had seen occasionally. She found him to be everything that her friends had told her. He drank, he smoked, he swore, and he was abusive as well. And instead of backing down and accepting such a marriage proposal so easily, to accept those years of constant abuse, Shera refused. She retaliated with her own hatred, her own anger and abuse, refusing to be a subservient partner in this relationship.p  
Sometimes, when she thought about it, she could almost see herself becoming that quiet housewife, becoming that woman who didn't say anything, only smiled vacantly and cooked. She could almost see herself becoming that, and that fueled her anger, fueled her fire.p  
They had contrasted against eachother so sharply, their personalities so different, that sparks had flew, and in the end, nothing could keep them together. Although they agreed to the custom of being mated with extreme reluctance, they had both agreed that such a gesture was words, meaningless, and that they had never done such a thing in the end. The show was a success, their parents left them alone, and they were left with eachother.p  
Shera had to live in his house, she had to stay with him because that was what she was supposed to do. She hated that and she hated him for making her do something like that. She refused to be tethered to such a house, to be tied and bound and become the person she so hated in her youth.p  
She stayed in the house for appearances, but her and Cid's relationship was anything but happy. Everyday, a raging argument ensued, everyday, something was thrown, or broken, or someone left. Everyday filled her with that sinking feeling. Perhaps she WAS becoming that quiet housewife. And that was enough to fuel her outrageous behavior. That thought was enough to provoke completely unwarranted attacks on Cid, to keep that level of hostility in her high, and to keep her from ever becoming a servant to him or to anyone.p  
Now he came home glowing, like some stupid whore did in one of those history books she read. She knew the story well and it sickened her. Some perfect hero with his perfect, wimpy, bubble-headed blonde glowing so happy and bright while the hero called the shots. She hated those stories because she believed such love could and never would exist. And now, the man she hated had it. He had pushed some other girl into being his slave so that he could have some glow to show off to his obnoxious friends. Not only that, he smelled TERRIBLE. Something was wrong with him, something that only fueled her hatred onwards. That had pushed her over the edge. But almost anything seemed to be able to do that now.p  
She hated him for that, for giving into such a stupid legend. And yet, she knew she could not stay out here forever.p  
She stood, flaring her wings out in annoyance and feeling another sensation of anger flow through her at her thoughts. She had to take some time off herself, she could not stand to be near such a chauvinist, such a stubborn fool. She had to go off, do something to release her stress, and remind her that she was free, and she could do whatever she pleased. That she was not someone's concubine to be used.p  
She took to the air, glad that her glasses were secure against her face and not swept away, and looked around. She winged around, looking, until she saw the familiar shade of her friends and leveled downwards, not intending to come back to that house for some time.p  
CENTER~~~/centerp  
Vincent stood, his claws hovering above the knobs in the wall, not sure of what he should do. This kind of experience was foreign to him completly. As a demon, he had always bathed in pools of water under the cover of darkness...the idea of steam instead of water, and a stall instead of the outdoors, was strange to him. However, he needed to think for a bit, and he felt somewhat dirty, so he decided that he might as well give it a try.p  
He braced his claws against the knobs, noting that the floor beneath his footclaws didn't slip underneath him. Feeling more assured, he turned the knobs slowly at the same time.p  
There was a hissing noise as the steam began to form around him, and he stared at it in confusion. It wasn't terribly warm, but to him it was hot. No doubt to the dragons, whose resistance to fire was legendary, this seemed remarkably tame. He brushed his claws over his eyes for a moment, wiping away some droplets that had formed on his eyelashes, and turned slowly.p  
Moisture built on his body gradually, but as the steam flow increased, he did in fact feel wet, and even his hair began to feel the weight of water. He worked his claws through the tangled mass for a few moments, feeling it slide and shift easily underneath his hands. His hair could easily get tangled, but it just as easily untangled, and in that way he was lucky. He ran his claws across the horns that came from his head for a moment and sighed to himself.p  
He held onto his upper arms with his claws and looked down, slight pools of water building beneath him.p  
He couldn't do this...he couldn't doom Cid this way. He felt his face clench with emotion, and a noise tried to break through his throat. He didn't want Cid to die...he didn't want him to have to suffer...p  
Vincent closed his eyes, letting the heat cover his face as he leaned towards the walls, hoping it would dilute the blood that was beginning to flow from his eyes. p  
He didn't want to die...not now, not now that he had found everything that he had wanted. Not now that he had actually found a purpose to live...he didn't want to die...but more then that, he didn't want Cid to die either.p  
The thought of the dragon lying still and motionless made Vincent clutch his arms closely, another slight sound escaping him. No, no he couldn't bear it. To see him die in such a way...to see him die at all...no, he couldn't do that.p  
But he knew as well as Cid did that their fates were sealed at this point. They knew the moment they began speaking that they were doomed, sentenced to death. But that didn't mean that Vincent wanted to die...it didn't mean that he was able to accept such an outcome...p  
Vincent looked up at the ceiling and let words escape him, tiny and choked. "Why? Why us? You bless us with your aura and then you strike us down...why are you doing this to us? Why are we cursed?"p  
Vincent shivered despite the heat. "Why do we have to die..."p  
His wings folded limply against his back, and he let his tail wrap around one of his footclaws as he leaned against the wall, crying helplessly.p  
CENTER~~~/centerp  
Shera and her friends had settled at one of the eateries that lined the streets of her town. Dragons loved to eat, and they could eat great amounts when the urge came to them. She went there more because she just wanted a place to talk with them where she wouldn't be interrupted, and a place where she could forget her forced marriage for precious hours.p  
As she had expected, the two of them were lingering outside of the bar, seemingly waiting for her, but at the same time looking as if they were just loitering.p  
A large black wing greeted her, and she landed neatly beside them, her wings folding behind her back. Tifa was the one who had waved, and she smiled in response, Aeris right behind her.p  
Tifa was one of the night birds, the birds that lived below the ground or in some semblance of it. They rarely had any light, so their dark plumage was a great help. Tifa's feathers were completely lusterless black, as were her tail feathers. They matched her black hair perfectly, which was tied back at the moment, and the scales on her feet were a dark grey. She wore her normal ensemble of a white tanktop and shorts, which showed off her musclature. Shera had to admit that Tifa was one of the strongest females she had ever seen in any species, and Tifa was not afraid to flaunt it. Shera sometimes found herself jealous over her ability, but never voiced such thoughts outloud.p  
The bird was one of her earliest friends, and had been the most instrumental in helping Shera gain her own sense of self. Tifa had always strongly opposed any kind of reliance of trust with men, and she, in fact, almost seemed to regard them with a kind of hatred. This made Shera wonder sometimes whether or not Tifa was interested in men at all, but it wasn't really her business. Tifa also differed from most other birds in that she didn't believe so strongly in the entire "survival" belief her entire species had become so dependent on. Tifa believed in living life for yourself, and that some things that had no purpose had to be enjoyed at times. It was also why she didn't have a mate, which struck the birds as blasphemy considering she was in her prime, physically speaking. Tifa was on the outskirts of the bird society, and she spent a great deal more time with Shera and Aeris then with anyone else. The bird and dragon had met while Shera was flying at night as a child, and struck up a conversation that had blossomed into the friendship they now had.p  
Aeris was an angel, which, originally, had made Tifa and Shera uncomfortable. Angels normally stuck to their own kind, and it was strange that one would come to the dragons and birds for friendship. But Aeris was different in a way...she hinted at not being a complete angel, although she had the snow white feathers and arms that distinguished her from the bird race. Her chestnut brown hair was tied behind her in a long braid, as it always had been, and she always seemed to wear pink in various forms, which tonight was a light pink dress. And she was never, ever without her boots, which confused Tifa and Shera as well when she stayed at their houses over night. She even slept with them on. But they never asked, not really finding it annoying, just curious, and she never told them, so the mystery remained unsolved. Her eyes shone with some kind of natural light that angels had (or at least, that's what she said), and she was, by far, out of the three the kindest and most considerate.p  
Aeris had come to join Tifa and Shera much later, due to a falling out among her kind. Aeris had disagreed with them on something, although the specifics of which they could never get out of her, and they had told her to stay away for a short period of time, in which she hovered around the dragon city. Tifa and Shera, who were younger and more impetuous in those days, waved her down, and she quickly became their friend, although with Aeris it seemed like anyone could become her friend in moments. She had been allowed back with the Angel society, but now with her friends outside of her own species, she spent less and less time with them and was...maturing because of it. Tifa and Shera had been somewhat surprised to hear how closed minded angels could be, but comparing the supposedly divine species to their own lessened the impact. They had all been told since they were children that the angels were divine, but as one grows old myths become lies, and Aeris' stories only seemed to prove that the angels were just as corrupt and illogical as the birds or the dragons. No one even bothered to mention the demons. That was one story that everyone believed, because the thought that the damage, the pain and hurt one causes others, is one's own fault and not the fault of a demon who has decided to play with you was too painful. No one wanted responsibility, but no one wanted perfection either.p  
One thing that had remained with Aeris after her psuedo-break off with the rest of the angel race was her strong sense of morals. Aeris had a strict ethical code that she followed, and although she tried very hard not to force it on the others, her breeding often got into the way, causing her to go into long sermons about right and wrong, especially about martyrdom. Aeris hated the concept of martyrs with a passion, relating them to her own corrupt species, based around lies and hatred in the name of divine guidance, and the sacrifice of one for one's belief became the epitome of stupidity to her. This meshed in well with Tifa's semi-survivalist sense, and the two of them agreed on that often. Aeris, along with Tifa and Shera, also refused the company of men, finding the angels among her own kind far too stuck up and self-righteous for her blood.p  
Crossbreeding was completely out of the question.p  
So Aeris, Tifa, and Shera talked a lot to one another, often about how they disagreed with their own species beliefs, and they each found it a welcome break from their daily routine.p  
"Hey Shera, was he being a #$^#@ again?" Tifa smiled at her friend, the fire lit in Shera's eyes painfully evident, as the three of them walked into the cafe simultaenously, the owner greeting them with a slightly exasperated nod. They always came here, but at least they paid when the night was over with.p  
They settled at their customary table at the corner of the bar, Tifa perching on top of the backrest, her footclaws fitting into holes that had been worn into the fabric after many years of eating at the same place. She folded her wings up to her body as Aeris put her hands in front of her face, lacing her fingers together delicately as she blinked at her draconian friend.p  
"What did he do this time?"p  
Shera sighed and put her hand on her forehead, not even feeling the heat due to the protection of her scales. She was already calming down in the presence of friends, but she still felt angry. "You won't believe it."p  
"What? What?" Tifa looked at her eagerly, ruffling her wings a little bit. The waiter didn't even bother to visit their table, knowing already what the three would order. Shera tried to keep her voice level.p  
"You guys know about that Heaven Glow thing, right?"p  
"Sure." Aeris shrugged in a confused way. "I heard about it all the time...but what does that have to do with it?"p  
"Get this." Shera held her hand out flat for a moment, trying to keep her face impassive. "He's got it."p  
The two of them blinked at her for several minutes, Tifa finally leaning forward on the table, her wings changing the alignment of the table for a few moments. "What? What do you mean? You serious?"p  
Shera nodded. "I came home and he's got that stupid glow all over him. Claims it's none of my business."p  
Aeris looked deeply offended. "Of course it's your business, he's your husband, even if it's not by choice. He must be having an affair or something."p  
Tifa was about to say something, but Shera cut her off. "But the worst part is, you KNOW what kind of a guy he is! Can you imagine what he did to her?"p  
Tifa made a face of disgust. "Ugh."p  
"That poor girl." Aeris looked momentarily distraught. "He must have lied to her terribly."p  
"But wait, wait. I thought that whole heaven thing was a myth though." Tifa looked confused, a feathery wingtip near her mouth. "There are no gods...so how that could happen? There's no way."p  
The two of them nodded, neither one religious in any way. Aeris spoke first. "That's just terrible though...that he'd cheat on you like that."p  
Shera rolled her eyes. "It's not like I care. I'm just annoyed because he found some poor girl to fawn all over him. Ugh, makes me sick to think about it. Just like in all those stories about that strong guy and that weak girl that always follows him around."p  
"And usually dies a noble death on his behalf, don't forget." Aeris rolled her eyes in turn.p  
"Or on everyone's." Tifa pointed at. At this point three plates were brought to their table, the same thing they had every time they came here. All three of them were vegetarians, so their food was cunningly crafted vegetable substitutes of more appetizing looking food. They had gotten used to the taste and even enjoyed it now, although it went against both Shera and Tifa's natural chemistry.p  
Tifa leaned forward, using the joint in her wings to carefully balance her food. Most birds used their feet for this purpose, but her feet were occupied keeping her aloft. Besides, Tifa felt accomplished whenever she could use her wings like arms. Occasionally for more difficult food she would use one foot while balancing on the other, but at the moment she held her food tightly so it wouldn't slip. Shera and Tifa used forks, which reminded them of just how lucky they were to have hands.p  
"We've got to tell someone or something." Aeris took a dainty bite off her fork, blinking for a moment. "He just can't get away with that, it's disgraceful."p  
Tifa nodded in agreement, but Shera shrugged.p  
"Who am I supposed to tell? The council doesn't care unless you kill something, and it takes ages to get a normal appointment with them anyway. My parents won't care and I'm sure his wouldn't either."p  
"Excuse me..."p  
The three of them jerked sharply at the figure standing near their table, and then recoiled instinctively. The feline smiled at their reaction, clean white fangs against perfect silver fur.p  
"What do you want?" Shera tried to keep her suspicion out of her voice. Only a fool trusted a feline. Everyone knew that. She kept her eyes averted, the lack of covering on the feline making her uncomfortable. Tifa, on the other hand, looked extremely angry, while Aeris managed to maintain an aura of dignified surprise.p  
The feline seemed to know about the reaction he was having, and put one of his paws near his lips for a moment, before leaning down, his head closer and whispering to them conspiratorially.p  
"I couldn't help but overhear the problem you seem to be having..." His voice was smooth and quiet and calm. His silver hair draped over his shoulder, spilling onto the table like water. Shera and the others kept their eyes firmly on their plate, although she could hear Tifa shuffling around angrily at his approach.p  
"I think I have a solution for you."p  
"You do...?"p  
The feline smiled, emerald green eyes sparkling. "I know exactly who to go to for your problem. They'd listen to me, I'm sure..." His voice was reassuring in a strange way. "All I need if your permission and your names, if you please..."p  
Shera thought for a moment. She didn't trust the feline, but something about him seemed sincere. Either way, it would help get Cid in trouble, which was what she wanted anyway. She shrugged. What could he do to her with just her name anyway?p  
"Shera." She said simply, not wanting Cid's name to disgrace her own. "Just call me Shera."p  
Tifa and Aeris exchanged glances for a moment, then spoke in turn. They mirrored Shera's lack of a last name.p  
"Tifa."p  
"Aeris."p  
The feline smiled and nodded, fangs showing once again. "Thank you very much...I take it that means you approve?"p  
Shera nodded, and the feline straightened, brushing his silver hair back behind his shoulder. "My thanks to you...you've made my day."p  
There was a flash, and when they looked again the feline was gone. Shera rolled her eyes, knowing that felines loved flashy tricks and misdirection.p  
"Do you think that was a good idea?" Aeris looked uncomfortable, while Tifa apparently still was upset.p  
Shera shrugged. "As long as it gets him into trouble, I don't mind. You're right, he SHOULD have some repurcussions for what he's done."p  
"Ooo..." Tifa fumed to herself. "That smug look on his face...who did he think he was? I so could have taken him."p  
Shera and Aeris nodded, knowing this to be true. Despite the feline's height, Tifa was a fierce fighter, and once angered was unstoppable. "You're right...he did seem full of himself."p  
"I wonder what he was hiding." Aeris brushed her hair back, and this brought the conversation to an abrupt halt for a few moments, then she nervously laughed. "Well, either way, at least he'll get what's coming to him."p  
Shera and Tifa nodded, and their conversation continued on as usual, this time avoiding the topic of Cid and whoever he was with entirely.p  
CENTER~~~/centerp  
Vincent finally managed to make himself calm down, returning to the former stoicism that had allowed him to survive much of the torment his life had once been. He stared at himself in the mirror without emotion, noting the slight red tinge underneath his eyes that didn't seem to want to leave. He decided it wasn't that important anyway and searched for a towel, finding a large one nearby. He wrapped his hair up in a turban like manner, waiting for the fabric to absorb the moisture, while he continued to stare at himself in the mirror.p  
Everytime he saw the faint glow around his body, emanating from him into the thin air. He tried to touch it for a moment, but it passed through his claws just as he expected it to. He didn't expect it to be substantial anyway...p  
The glow confused him, depressed him, and gladdened him everytime he saw it, and that constant turmoil of emotions was taking its toll. He was tired and he just wanted to sleep for once. He could see the lines building underneath his scarlet eyes, and decided that after he was finally dry, he would ask Cid where he could sleep.p  
He also found himself wondering about the argument that had occurred while he was hiding in the closet. Who was it that Cid was arguing with? Was it his friend? He let his claws trail across his chest, finding the scars that were still healing there easily and causing tiny pricks of pain to go through him. Was it his...p  
Vincent shook his head, forcing such thoughts away. This aura was proof enough at least...he knew that the aura was not only telling the entire world his feelings, but it also served as a reminder whenever he felt like he wasn't good enough to be loved. Which was often.p  
He sighed and shook the towel in his hair, struggling to try and get it dry. His hair was a hassle to deal with, but trying to cut it off had resulted in nothing else then having the strands grow in his hands to their previous length. Another strange affliction they had decided to curse him with...p  
He held his metal arm up near the mirror, sighing. He had gotten used to it...he had many years to get used to it, but it always bothered him. He supposed it would bother anyone...p  
The apathy that this state of mind was giving him was alarming him, and he faced a problem he often had...struggling to get out of this stoicism that he had worked himself into. He didn't normally react to his arm or his other disfigurements with such nonchalance.p  
He sighed and pulled the towel from his head, letting his hair fall free. It was still thick and heavy and clumped due to moisture, and he sighed, shaking his head for a few moments. Only a few stray droplets flew, but considering that after this was over he was planning on going to sleep, he didn't want to sleep with wet hair. He rubbed the towel back into his hair with renewed force, continuing to stare at himself in the mirror.p  
The aura was there and gone again in a few moments, constantly fluctuating and changing. It was hard to keep it in sight and sometimes he wasn't sure whether it was a trick of the light or if he was actually seeing it. The next moment the aura would flare up so brightly that Vincent was sure that he was being bathed in some holy light, and then it would fade again. He was confused at the capriciousness of the aura's nature, but he shrugged, continuing to rub at his hair, struggling to at least get it somewhat dry before retiring to sleep.p  
He let his hair fall back down. This time it was more dry, and his hair flared around him much more then usual, the strands each apart and seeming to try and stay that way. He chanced a small smile in the mirror at his appearance. His hair looked kind of silly this way. He brushed it back behind him, noting the hair fuzzing around his horns, completely hiding them from view. That was something he was glad for...p  
He noted a twin towel on the floor nearby, apparently also used, and Vincent shrugged, not sure of what else to do, and put his towel along with the other one. The towels matched pretty well, although Vincent's loose strands that were caught in his towel was a key difference. He shook his tail over and shook his head for a moment, causing his hair to frizz all about him again, and he smiled slightly as he brushed it behind him yet again. He noted the soft glow from his arm as he moved it, not bright or dim, but just soft. He found that kind of intensity pleasing and more calming then the rampant nature as of previous.p  
He pulled his clothes back on, walking through the door somewhat warily. He wasn't sure of what to expect. Would the woman be back again? Would Cid have changed his mind? He shook his head at that. There would be no reason for Cid to do that...the aura around him still glew as strongly as it had before, and he let this comfort him.p  
"Highwind...?" He coughed after speaking, the humidity of the bathroom affecting his vocal chords slightly, and looked around curiously. He heard a noise off to his right and headed in that direction, unsure of where else he could go. "Highwind, I was just curious as to where I'm going to sleep tonight..."p  
Cid's bedroom as just as dissheveled as he thought it would be, with clothes thrown everywhere, scratches and nicks in the walls from careless tail lashings, and the majority of the room taken up by the large bed near the wall. In this bed Cid was sleeping on his side, curled up slightly with his wings folded near his shoulders. The thing that made Vincent stop speaking was the fact that Cid was only taking half the bed.p  
He walked closer, avoiding miscellaenous objects that had somehow found their way onto the floor, not sure of what to make of this. Cid wouldn't have left that room for him, would he?p  
The glow around him fluctuated, like a heart beat, for a few seconds, then remained at a steady glow. He smiled slightly again. The aura had to constantly remind him...there could be no other reason for this...and there was no other option for where he should sleep. Cid had already known, and in his heart Vincent had already known as well but had denied it out of years of disbelief in the concept of caring. He walked to the side of the bed, pulling the covers up slightly to slide his clawed feet underneath them. The fabric had enough strength so that claws could not pierce and tear through it during the night, but kept in the warmth very well. Vincent had encountered this material before, ages and ages ago, but it had been a long time since he had slept in an actual bed, an actual bed with comforters and blankets...p  
An actual bed with someone else...p  
As he slid underneath the covers he felt the warmth assailing his body instantly. The air underneath had already been heated by Cid's body, who had apparently fallen asleep after Vincent had gone into the shower. The demon turned onto his side, staring at the sleeping dragons back, the wings moving slightly with each breath.p  
He stared for a moment, the entire realization of where he was hit him. He was with someone he loved, in a place where he was safe...p  
He smiled broadly for once, something that felt strange to him, but it also made him feel better. He moved forward until he could slide his claws around Cid, drawing him close, letting the scaled wings press into his chest. Cid just sighed in his sleep, not moving, and for once in his life, Vincent understood what it meant to want to cry out of happiness.p  
He kept his tears to himself, not wanting to ruin the bed or sheets, but allowed the safety and warmth and happiness to take him to sleep, his tail tightly curled around the dragons own. 


	7. Capture

~Author's Note~

Thanks fer all yer kind reviews and such. ^_^ They make me so happy. ^_^ Be sure ta check out my site at http://www.cidvin-shattered.cjb.net ta see my fanart fer this. ^_^ And remember, yer reviews only serve ta inspire me. ^_^ 

Cid woke when he felt sharp movement near him. Confused, he turned and found Vincent jerking spasmodically, his face tightly clenched in what seemed to be pain. Concern and fright filled him at once and he turned quickly, gripping the demon by the shoulders and lifting him upwards, shaking him.

"Vin, wake up! Vin, are you okay? Wake up!"

Vincent's eyes eventually fluttered open, and they were beginning to tinge a red color, a sign he was near tears. "Highwind...?"

"Are you alright?" Cid looked at him with concern, sighing in relief. "#$^@, you had me scared there for a bit."

"I'm..." Vincent shook for a moment, his eyes turning a deeper red color, but he seemed to be trying to stop the blood droplets from falling. He shook his head and closed his eyes, failing in his efforts as small tricklets of blood began to seep from underneath black eyelashes. He covered his face with his claws. "I'll be okay...just give me a..a few minutes..."

Cid looked at Vincent sternly as he pulled the demon's claws away from his face, staring him directly in the eyes.

"The #$^# you're okay."

Vincent couldn't stand up to that and he looked down, his black hair hiding his face from view as small blood droplets began to drop onto the covers below them. Cid gently reached a claw underneath his hair, taking ahold of Vincent's face and turning it upwards to face him.

"Tell me what's wrong..."

Vincent's face was clenched in terrible pain, but it was not because of the dragon's touch. The emotional anguish on his face was terrible to see, and Cid felt his heart beat along the same rhythms, and the same sad song rising within himself. Another small droplet rolled down Vincent's cheek at an exaggeratedly slow pace. His fangs showed as he spoke again, his words clear but pained.

"Highwind, I had a nightmare..."

Cid brushed some of Vincent's loose hair away from his face, not held back by the bandana the demon once loved to wear. "What was it about...?"

Vincent sighed deeply, and Cid could feel him moving underneath his claws, shifting. It was almost as if something had been lifted off him, only to come back once again. His voice and his manner all seemed to tell of some terrible weight resting on his shoulders. Vincent kept his scarlet eyes locked with Cid's sky-blue ones, struggling to blink away tears.

"It's...a very long...a very long story..." Vincent's voice halted as he took a deep and quick breath between words, almost against his will. Cid settled back, folding his wings against his back, the spikes on his tail lowering slightly as the percieved threat had vanished, and he nodded.

"Take as long as y'like. Anythin' if it'll help..." He noticed Vincent's tail wrapped around his own in a deathgrip.

Vincent placed his claws on Cid's shoulders for a moment, almost as if for support, and looked down, breathing deeply for a few moments before speaking, brushing his black skin against his white to try and clear away his blood. It left dark red smears across his cheeks, but he continued to rub while he was talking, clearing it away slowly. "I wasn't always a demon..."

Cid nodded as Vincent replaced his claws on his shoulders, not because he was afraid he would run away, but almost as if he had no other support. He remembered Vincent mentioning this before, but decided not to speak in fear of scaring the demon back into silence.

"I used to be an angel..."

Cid stared at him in incomprehension for several seconds, while Vincent let go of his shoulders to take hold of his own, black and gold against such pale skin. "An angel..."

Cid was extremely confused, but he waited for him to continue, not wanting to interrupt the painful narrative. Vincent forced his wings away from his body, which they desperately and instinctivly wanted to cover from view.

"I was...one of them for a long time..." Vincent's words were halting and painful. Cid curled his tail, if at all possible, more around Vincent's own as a reminder that he was there, something the demon desperately needed. "And then...then I met her..."

Cid shook his head slowly, anger rising in his body for someone he didn't even know. There was only one way for this kind of story to end, and fury rose in him at the thought of the inevitable conclusion. How dare someone do that to him, how dare someone treat him that way...only the mention of someone else, of someone else that could have done this to him, was enough to make him angry, not from jealousy, but from the fierce protectiveness he felt towards the demon. Vincent seemed to notice the flame building in Cid's eyes, and seemed to take comfort in his anger, still struggling to continue speaking.

"Her name...her name was Lucrecia...she was...beautiful...and she was feline...and...I loved her..."

Cid continued to remain silent, not sure of how to respond or whether he even should. Vincent had his claws buried in his hair, shaking his head back and forth slowly as if trying to control the raging tide of memory. 

"I don't know why...I think about it now...I don't know if she loved me...I don't know anything...maybe she was using me...just like she used the other angel before me, and how he died a twisted, broken monster...I knew she had a bad reputation....I heard from so many others how many lives she had broken...but...but I couldn't help it...she had me...so easily..."

Vincent's eyes moved upwards to meet with Cid's, almost as if expecting to see hatred or displeasure, but Cid's eyes only radiated concern and sympathy. "...our relationship...I...I don't know if...I think he's still alive...but I should finish..."

Cid cocked his head slightly, his blue eyes staring into Vincent's own. He waited, and it took several minutes for the demon to work up the apparent courage or strength to speak again.

"She...she told me she was...she was pregnant..." 

Cid felt a moment of shock, but it quickly passed, concern for Vincent, how he would have dealt with it, how he would have felt, what he did, what had happened, taking its place.

"I didn't know what to do...I just...I just froze...what was I supposed to say?" Vincent pulled his claws from his hair for a moment and looked at Cid with pained, but dry eyes. Cid continued to remain silent as Vincent continued to speak, his sentences broken, evidence of thoughts running together and being released. "She...she went to the other angels about me...the other angels...I think she got tired of me...but unlike Hojo...I actually got her pregnant...but like him, I was to suffer for her treachery..."

Vincent dragged his metal claw down his face, not deep enough to wound, but to feel the cold of it against his skin. Cid watched his motion, not moving to stop it, knowing that the demon was not intending on injuring himself in such a display. He could feel his inner flame rising at the thought of someone doing this to Vincent, to anyone. He hated betrayal, it was one of the things he could never tolerate. He could feel the difference in the temperature of his skin and Vincent's, and tried to keep his fury inside. Vincent continued to speak, not noticing or not wanting to comment.

"I never even knew him, Highwind...I never knew Hojo...never saw him before...but I knew what happened to him." The empty look in Vincent's eyes was frightening, as if he had leeched all emotion to be able to speak the next words in the story. "I knew what they did to him, after they found out that he had fallen in love...fallen in love with someone they didn't approve of..."

Cid wanted to say something, but could think of nothing. What could he say? He twisted his tail again, and he felt the demons tail respond in kind, which helped relieve the feelings of uselessnes he was having at the inability to say anything.

"The angels...ha..." Vincent laughed humorlessly, a sick, sad sound. "Angels...Hojo's only crime was his love for her...and they tore him apart." Vincent's tone on his last few words was frightening and frightened. "They turned him into some horrible monster...something terrible...and sent...sent the other species to kill him...he wanted to die...everyone knew that...that was their gift of mercy..."

Cid dug through his memory, and remembered a vague story that dragons had passed down, that there had been some monstrosity that they had killed out of pity, and it had died with a smile on its face...he had never believed the story, much as he had never believed many of the dragon legends, but now he began to wonder whether or not that monster was who Vincent was speaking about.

"I knew about this!" Vincent's voice rose for a moment. "I knew what she had done to him! How she traded him in to save herself! And yet I fell for her anyway...I fell for her. I didn't head Hojo's warnings even in death...I never even met him...Lucrecia...she denied anything linking her to how he got caught...I don't know whether to trust her or not...I never should have trusted her...I should have trusted myself...trusted everyone else..."

Cid put a hand on Vincent's shoulder, finding the flesh trembling underneath his claws. The burning inside his chest was continuing to increase as he heard more of the story, and the angrier he got at the demon's ill treatment. 

"She turned me in as well...and her son...and...and the angels..."

Vincent shivered violently, his wings shuddering behind him. "The angels had something different in store for me...worse then what they did to Hojo...for so long I envied his quick death...but they wanted something different from me...they wanted to know...to know how far they could go..."

Cid's face narrowed in an expression of anger, his eyes glowing brightly with his barely controlled inner fire at what had happened. He didn't say anything, his tail simply twisting tighter around the demon's own. He tried to control his tensed muscles which shook with the effort.

Vincent continued, apparently not able to stop. He held up his metal arm, his voice cold. "They tried to turn me into a demon...but they didn't know how. Their first attempt mutilated my arm...they gave me this one instead..."

Vincent shivered violently again, his body quaking. Cid could feel the vibrations through his entire body. "They spent...I don't know how long they spent on me...working to get me just right...I don't know how many demons they killed to get the information they needed to make me into this...to make me into some kind of...psuedo-demon...I'm not even real to them!" Vincent's outburst was pained and emotional, and his eyes began turning red again. "The demons even know I'm fake! What was the point of it all? Why try and pass me off as one of them? ...I know...it's so I could never be happy again...they knew it too..."

Vincent shivered and almost fell forward, and Cid gladly took him in his arms, letting him shake within them. Cid held him as he shook, struggling again not to cry as Cid rubbed his back softly. He could feel the soft strands of his hair brushing against his chin, and underneath his claws he could feel slight raised lines, scars that he now knew the source of. 

"Lucrecia...she died...died in childbirth I think it said...they told me she was calling for Hojo at the time...they may have been lying to me, but with her I'm not so sure...my son...I didn't even know...I didn't think it was possible...he lived...he escaped...and...and his name was Sephiroth...and I don't even know where that name came from..."

Cid smiled for a moment, and his voice came softly. "We've met..."

Apparently the first spoken words from Cid struck a chord in Vincent. "Oh Highwind, I'm sorry!" He clutched at him frantically, clinging to the back of his shirt and burying his face in his chest, shivering. "I'm going to kill you, just like I did her! I can't do this, I don't want you to die..."

"Vin, Vin..." Cid tightened his grip around the demon in a quiet hug, waiting for a few moments until the shaking subsided. "Vin, calm down, alright?"

Cid waited until Vincent looked at him. "You knew as well as I did we were @#%@ed the moment we talked. Don't blame yourself for it, it isn't your fault. I know what's goin' to happen, and I'm not goin' to back down. I'm goin' to stand up for you, even if I die doin' it, 'cause this glow..." Cid gestured to the soft glow that was now blending with Vincents. "This glow means we got somethin' that most people never ever even get close to. And I ain't goin' to give that up just 'cause I'm goin' to die."

"I don't want you to die..." Vincent's voice was shaky, and Cid's response matched him.

"I don't want you to die either...but there's nothin' we can do..."  
"But don't you care? About what happened?" Vincent stared at him. "I used to be an angel! I have a son! A son, doesn't that mean anything to you?"

"Vin." Cid touched his cheek softly, a slight tinge of the demon's blood coming off on his claws. Vincent stared at him with bewildered, confused eyes, the dragons reaction being the last thing he had expected. "Vin, look. It don't matter to me whether your wings are black or white, or who else is walkin' around with your name. All I care about is what's right in front of me right now, alright? It'll be okay in th' end, you'll see."

Vincent collapsed against him, breathing raggedly, but not crying. Cid held him as he calmed down, finding the aura around them glowing stronger then it had before.

"Don't worry, Vin. I'll be there for you...I won't ever let 'em do that t'you again..." The tone in Cid's voice was dead serious.

The demon's claws clutched at him tighter, with a sense of desperation, and the dragon held onto him with just the same tenseness in his claws.

How long would he be able to do this? How long was his life going to last? He had to enjoy this while he could, he had to hang on as long as possible...

The two of them sat on the bed, holding onto eachother as if afraid they'd be ripped apart at any moment, and were silent, as the quiet of the darkness outside their window was the only thing there with them.

~~~

They fell asleep clutching one another, afraid and frightened. The aura prevented this from doing any kind of damage, and the two of them held on until the light began to awaken them, and they both shook themselves awake.

"You 'kay?"

Vincent nodded, his face again having gained its normal emotionless demeanor, the blood on his cheeks having flaked off during the night, leaving only a slight red tinge where it had been shed. The two of them walked into the main room cautiously.

"She prob'ly won't come around today..." Cid shrugged as he walked toward the kitchen. "So we should be alright..."

Vincent nodded, his hair falling over his eyes. He brushed it back with a slight tinge of annoyance as he followed Cid into the kitchen. There he found the dragon with a pair of scissors, cutting at the edge of his shirt.

"Highwind, what are you doing...?"

Cid ripped the last part free and handed it to Vincent with a soft smile. "Here you go, Vin. This should keep your hair out of your eyes."

Vincent took the strip of blue fabric gratefully, tying his hair back with familiar grace. As he expected, a few strands escaped, as he thought they would, and lingered around his face, although they weren't unduly annoying. He had almost gotten used to them, and had long ago given up on getting them under control.

"Want somethin' to eat...?" Cid turned to the fridge near the corner, glancing at Vincent who sat down at one of the tables nearby, looking lighter. The talk they had last night must have really taken a lot off his mind...Cid thought to himself. He even looks happier.

"I don't know...what do you have...?" Vincent's voice was soft, as usual. Cid looked at him for a second, then snapped his claws. 

"Oh yeah, you don't eat much...let me think of something..."

The dragon turned back to the fridge, his tail twitching back and forth distractedly. Vincent noted the aura around him somewhat gravitating towards Cid's, as if reaching for it. It didn't surprise him in the least.

Cid pulled several small containers out of the fridge, then shrugged in a way. "Time to improvise!"

Vincent watched as the dragon took down a large pot from one of the cupboards and put the contents of every container into it. After doing this, he held the pot up by the handle, took a deep breath, and exhaled a strong stream of flames at the pot, heating it up at an astronomical rate.

Vincent noticed with some interest that while he had been afraid of dragon fire for a great deal of time, watching Cid breathe fire had somehow lost it's danger. It must have been the aura's affect on him.

Cid set the pot on the table, smiling as he also produced two bowls and began to pour the strange concoction into both. He smiled at Vincent for a moment. "Dragon secret, honest."

Vincent smiled and leaned his head on the back of his hands. "Uh huh."

"Anyway..." Cid put the pot to one side, sitting with his bowl in front of him, sliding a fork over in Vincent's direction. "I actually HAVE had this kind of #$^# before, not bad really. Whenever I get hungry I jus' throw everythin' together and..." Cid shrugged. "Live with what I got."

Vincent nodded, taking the fork and studying it for a few moments. He waited and watched Cid eat for a few seconds before remembering what he had to do, taking several bites of the mixture. Compared to what the demon had been forced to eat for countless years, it tasted fantastic.

"This is very good." Vincent smiled at Cid, who seemed pleased at the praise.

"Ah, it's not that great..."

The two of them finished their meal and moved back into the living room, where Vincent sat on the couch, his wings folded safely against his back. "What am I going to do?"

Cid looked at him in confusion as he doublechecked the blinds and drapes over the windows. He had pulled them long ago, but the two of them did not want to take any chances. "Hmm?"

"I mean...when you go out..." Vincent looked off to one side. "You have things you need to do, I know you do...what should I do...?"

Cid went and sat down next to him, leaning back on the couch easily, trying to look confident, but he was having trouble. "I don't have to go out much, 'cept for food and #$^#...I'll be here a lot...but when I'm not, y'better hide somewhere safe until I come back..."

Vincent nodded. 

"Oh, and no matter what, don't let that #$&#$ Shera in. Don't even let her know you're here, if that's okay."

Vincent nodded again. "I don't want to meet her..."

Cid smiled in a strange way. "Got that right."

Vincent leaned back for a moment, stretching his arms above his head. "But despite everything, I am glad to be here...with you..."

Cid smiled at the demon, hugging him for a moment. "Wouldn't be anywhere else in the world..."

~~~

Thankfully, the two managed to get some days alone before everything was ruined. They spent these days as any couple would, sleeping, talking, eating together. They did almost everything together, talked about everything that had ever bothered them, and spent a great deal of time just enjoying eachother. They knew their time was limited, and they wanted to make as much use of it as possible. They spent each night and lived each day as if they had only seconds left to live, and that made the days all the more fulfilling. If anything, the few happy days they had strengthened their bond and made their love stronger. The aura remained at the strange fluctuating intensity it had before, but their devotion for eachother burned brighter with every moment they were together.

Some days Cid did have to leave and get food or other things, and those times Vincent felt very frightened and alone as he hid in the closet, hiding underneath piles of clothing. Because they were spending so much time together, any kind of separation became that more painful. When they were together, they were almost always touching in some way, and to even be separated from physical contact almost caused them pain. 

Sometimes Shera would knock or shout at the house, which Cid and Vincent would both ignore, but it was not as often as she usually did, or at least, that was what Cid said. That meant she had something else to spend her time on, and this wasn't good. It worried them both.

Days had gone by, and they almost wished that they could believe, even for a moment, that this would last forever. They wished that the world around them would disappear, leaving them only eachother. Even in an empty vortex, if they had eachother, they'd be happy. They wished that the world would just disappear, or time would freeze, so that they might enjoy their momentary happiness for a little longer. They didn't want their time, their lives, their world to end. But they knew it would, and it was only a matter of time before things fell apart.

That morning was much like the rest that had preceded it, the two naked and sleeping entertwined after a long active night. Because of all the contact they had had over the few days, their systems had begun to acclimate to eachother, and they began to follow the same patterns. They woke up at the same time, and slept at the same time, so the two woke again, lingering for just a moment underneath the welcome heat of the covers, and with the loving touch of their bodies. As with every morning that had passed happily in the dragon's house, they simply stared at one another for a few moments, overwhelmed with what they had. At these moments, death was worth what they saw in front of them.

They eventually did rise and begin to get dressed, wondering whether this would be the day when it would end, if this would the last time they'd ever see eachother, or ever see anything again, as they also did every morning.

This morning, unlike the others, Vincent walked into the kitchen holding a slip of paper in his claws, frightened and shaky. He was wearing the same pair of black pants he had worn when they had first met, his favorite piece of clothing. Cid asked him why he never wore a shirt, and the demon rubbed his shoulders for a moment.

"Too much pain..." he had mumbled, and Cid had nodded. He never asked him about it, so Vincent continued to wear his black pants, which he kept fastidiously clean. Cid, as it was, was dressed in his normal attire of green and blue, his favorite colors, on their final day.

Vincent stumbled as he walked, his tail providing him the extra balance he needed. It looked as if his world had been destroyed, and with a sick, sinking feeling, Cid knew what the note had to say.

"Vin, what's wrong?" Cid rose and went to meet him, taking the paper from the shaking claws carefully. The taller demon clung to him tightly, trying to regain his balance, as Cid's eyes scanned over the sheet of paper, scrawled with sharp black letters.

"They know you are here. They know who you are. They're coming for you. You must run."

"No signature..." Cid ignored the sick feeling in his stomach as he turned the slip of paper around before turning it back to face him. He glanced over at Vincent, who continued to hold onto him tightly. When the demon spoke, his voice was frightened and quiet.

"Highwind, what should we do...?

Cid crumpled the paper in anger, fire rising within him because he knew everything was ending, one way or another. "#$^#...we don't know who that's from...could be a trap..."

A sharp knock at the door caused the dragon and demon to jump, backing away quickly. 

"Highwind, what if..." Vincent's voice was a whisper, strained and shaky. "What if that's them, what if they found me? They'll...Highwind, what do we do?"

Cid looked to one side, clenching a fist, blue and green marbled scales shining in the light as he cursed, a slight flicker of flame visible in his breath. "#$^#..."

He turned and took Vincent's arm, leading him off. "Nothin' for it now...time to start runnin'..."

Cid led Vincent down a passageway that he had not been down before. It wasn't unusual, considering that Vincent spent little time moving around when Cid wasn't there, and Cid had no reason to go down this passageway, which he found led them to a door.

Cid opened the door quietly and slowly and looked around the edge. He didn't see any threats, thankfully, and he breathed a sigh of relief. He pulled Vincent away from the house, noting the demon staring at it sadly. Cid whispered to him quickly.

"I'll miss it too. C'mon..."

It made sense that the dragon would have an emergency exit to his house, one that would lead far away from the main entrance. The doorway had led them to the very edge of the city, near where the woods began, and the two began to run, weaving and ducking behind and around trees in hopes of losing their pursuers, which they were sure were right behind them.

Meanwhile, on the front step of Cid's house, the silver feline known as Sephiroth sat, smiling as he stood, tail swaying and twitching with a mind of its own.

"Too predictable..." His silken voice breathed from his furry throat, and then to almost anyone who was watching the feline, he raised a paw and then seemed to simply disappear, leaving nothing behind him except a piece of thin charcoal. "Simply too predictable..."

~~~

"Highwind, where should we go?" Vincent's voice was a mixture of emotion and nonemotion. Over the past few days with Cid at his house, Vincent had come out of his emotionless shell and stopped trying to hide how he felt, and Cid felt very close to him at these times. But he also knew Vincent well enough to know that the demon hid his emotions when he was upset, and he knew he was trying to keep calm. Cid could feel his inner fire rising, and he knew that he was just as upset as his demon companion. "What are we going to do...?"

"We got t'hide somewhere..." Cid pushed a branch to one side angrily, his scales protecting him from any damage it could have inflicted. They weren't stupid enough to risk flight, so they wandered on foot. "Somewhere they won't find us..."

He felt a tingle through his body, and an image flashed into his head, an outcropping of rocks, tinged with the darkness of night. He turned towards Vincent to find his face completely impassive, but the demon nodded slowly, confirming what Cid had suspected about the source of the mental message. The dragon matched his action, continuing to push his way through the brush.

"#$^#, wish I brought my god#$^# spear..."

~~~

"There..." The demon's whisper was barely caught by him, and he nodded again. The two of them knelt in the brush, struggling to keep their bodies out of sight as they surveyed the area around the rock outcropping, not sure of what to expect. The sun had almost set, and the area seemed to be abandoned, but something seemed wrong. Something seemed unnatural, and the two of them were understandably paranoid, not sure of whether or not the bushes in front of them could be hiding potential pursuers. The feeling in the night was heavy and oppressive, and they knew something was going to happen, whether or not it being good or bad was still unknown.

"Right...let's go!"

Cid darted from the brush quickly, Vincent following closely behind them, and the two of them rushed into the small cavern where they had met what seemed so long ago. Hoping they hadn't been seen, they tried to muffle their breathing, hugging the walls, heading for the farthest corner away from the entrance. They waited, and Vincent began to speak softly, his voice filled with pain.

"Highwind, I hope...please don't let them have seen us...please don't let them be out there..."

Cid waited as tensely as the demon did, waiting, waiting for something to come, to give them some kind of conclusion one way or the other.

They waited, and Vincent closed his eyes, shaking fitfully. Cid moved forward, taking the demons claws in his own. The demon opened his eyes, meeting with Cid's, and he took a deep breath before he could control his emotions again.

The wind rushed across the hole that hid their hiding place, again causing the low tone that they knew, and they stiffened at this, sure that it would give them away, although it was a natural phenomenon.

Finally it ended, and the two could see the darkness outside that was all-pervading. Fortunately there was little illumination from the night sky, and the two of them cowered in the corner of the cave, tightly entertwined, hoping that nothing would find them in what they believed to be their sanctuary.

They rested for a few tense minutes, waiting, and finally they were rewarded with the sound of flapping wings.

Breathing got quicker, more ragged, and they clung to eachother stronger then they had before. If the aura had not been protecting them, they surely would have broken skin. But they held onto eachother, and both of them could feel the fear rising within them. Their tails wrapped tightly, shaking.

Wings. Lots of wings beating. Maybe they were passing by, there was no way that anyone would know where they were...it had to be a mistake...it had to be...

More wings...

"Take your position over there, make sure to cover the escape routes..." A voice came to them from above, and Vincent hid his face with his claws, a soft sob escaping him despite his best efforts. Cid tightened his hold on him, knowing that there was no hope for them now. They had no use in pretending not to be there...Cid could feel hot tears rising in his own eyes, along with his inner fury, and he could feel his body temperature rising.

The sound of more wingbeats continued, and the sound of many creatures moving in different directions to different places. All too close for comfort, and Cid waited, waited for the inevitable...

"Attention, beings hidden within the cave."

Vincent opened his eyes, blood running down his face as he stared at Cid with hurt desperation in his eyes. Cid stared back at him, finally feeling a small drop of liquid escape his own eyes, and the two reached out for eachother, scales brushing against skin as they kissed softly and quickly, one last moment...

"We have you completely surrounded. Please come peacefully."

Cid and Vincent stared at eachother again, pain flowing between the two evenly, and finally Cid decided to speak, his voice angry and rough.

"Where'd we be goin'?"

Whoever was speaking replied almost automatically. "It has been decided with great deliberation about your case that there shall be a Grand Judgement. Your presence is required, and we have the force to remove you if the need be. Make this easy on yourself and us and come out peacefully."

"Highwind, what do we do? What do we do?" Vincent whispered quickly. "They know about us, they know who we are! What are we going to do?"

Cid thought and finally shook his head. "I don't know..."

"Come out quickly."

Cid brushed himself off and stood within the small cave, slightly stooped. "Can't do anythin' in here..."

He held a claw out to Vincent, who paused, confused, but took it, droplets of blood still running down his face.

Cid emerged first, keeping his claws meshed with Vincents. He glanced around quickly, not surprised at what he saw. It was mainly a contingent of angels, all of them armed, some with long range weapons, with a few dragons interspersed among them. When Vincent finally came into view, the gasp from the crowd was audible, and someone within the ranks struggled to rush towards him, snarling.

"It's a demon! A demon! Kill it! Quickly!"

The enraged dragon was restrained, but Vincent kept an emotionless demeanor, his eyes becoming clear, as he stood beside Cid, his partner. He kept a tight hold of his claws, refusing to show any emotion as the lead speaker for the angels, who looked vaguely familiar to Cid, continued to speak, distaste in his voice evident as he stared at the demon.

"We need to restrain you properly. Please do not resist."

"The $^#@ you will." Cid snarled deeply, fire hissing between his fangs. He crouched, flaring his wings out angrily. The aura around him began to glow brighter, merging with Vincent who took a matching pose, black and green and blue wings standing brightly against the dark sky. "The #$^# you will."

The aura glowed brightly as it was seen by those around, and more gasps came from the crowd. More then one person tried to rush forward this time, but they were again restrained. The speaker continued.

"You are surrounded by impossible odds. Save yourselves the trouble and surrender."

Cid hissed and took a tight hold of Vincent's claw, bracing himself and leaping upwards, flapping his wings furiously. Vincent mirrored his action completely, the same thought going through both their minds, as the contingent of angels and dragons that had been sent to fetch them rose to the air as well, intent on chasing down their prey.

The two of them flew as high as they could, fully aware of the mob that was chasing them, closing in with every moment.

Both of them folded their wings towards their bodies at the same time, allowing themselves to fall, slicing through the ranks that were attempting to follow them, going at far too fast a speed to be caught. Leveling out near the ground, they began to fly as fast as possible, wings beating at astronomical rates in order to try and outrun their pursuers.

"Highwind..." Vincent's voice was emotionless, and Cid could tell from the moment the demon had emerged from the cave that he had succeeded in locking his emotions behind a perfect shell. "What do we do?"

"Fly faster, Vin, that's $^#@in' what." Cid managed to pant, his breath coming in quickly and heavily. "That way-"

Vincent screamed, a horrific pained sound that stopped Cid and nearly stopped his heart, a sharp twinge of pain flooding his body. He turned towards the demon, who had his back arched, eyes closed as his muscles slowly relexed, the demon falling from the sky like a black rag, dragging the dragon down with him, who refused to let go of him. 

The collision with the ground was not too painful, considering they weren't that high above it, but Cid was far more concerned with the demon and what had happened to him.

"Vin? Vin!"

He rolled the demon over, finding a broken shaft having imbedded itself in his shoulderblade, dark, thick blood swelling from the wound. No wonder he hadn't been able to continue flying. Cid paused, staring at the demons blood as it escaped from his body, barely able to detect the rise and fall of his chest.

White hot fury filled him, and he snarled deep in his throat, flames flicking from between his teeth as he stood over the wounded demons body, one footclaw on either side flaring his wings, his tail lashing back and forth quickly.

Vincent stirred, trying to communicate but only able to make a small pained noise. This only helped to fuel Cid's anger. The enfuriated dragon looked upwards at those who were following him, his claws scraping against his scales as he clenched his fists.

"C'mon you bird#$^#ers!" Cid shouted at his pursuers, already spinning towards the ground, towards him. Flame roared from his mouth, lighting the night. "C'mon! I don't #$^#in' care, jus' try an' touch him! Jus' try it, bird#$^#ers! I'll kill you all!"

The raging dragon was quite a sight to behold as the angels sought to control him, struggling to avoid getting burned or set on fire, or slashed by the dragons claws and tail spikes. Cid fought as only one impassioned with the thought of protection can. The demon underneath him gave him strength, and he never ventured from his body, refusing to abandon it for even one moment.

Flames roared from his mouth, burning and setting garments aflame. His tail whipped around him, slashing and tripping. All through it the dragon roared, a deep, angry sound that spoke of unknown pain.  
Many angels were severely injured, but it was the dragons that finally turned out to be Cid's downfall.

The lead angel had not been bluffing when they said that they were outnumbered, and in the end Cid fell to his own kind, his flame and spikes useless against the scales of other dragons.

He fell into unconsciousness, slumped over the body of his demon. The last thing he remembered seeing was a flash of white and black, and a sharp pain, and then he was gone. 


	8. The Grand Judgement

He wasn't sure where he was or how much time passed since he had lost consciousness. He gradually regained his senses somewhere dark, which did not help his perception of time any. He could feel something cold against his cheek and against his chest, and guessed that he had to be against a floor of some kind. He tried to move.

"Mother $%^#!" Cid snarled as he felt a dull throbbing ache at the back of his skull. Although he was furious, he kept his voice low and soft, not wanting to irritate the ache further. "#$^# #$^@ #$^@...#$^#in' hurts...#$#@..."

"Perhaps if you hadn't resisted, like we suggested, then you wouldn't have such a headache."

"Yeah, #$^# you too..." Cid's voice didn't hold any particular malice, just an overtly blunt method of telling whoever the speaker was to shut up. He managed to push himself upwards, putting a claw to his head shakily. The throbbing was insistent and distracting, and he couldn't focus his eyes for a few moments. Thankfully, due to the darkness, he couldn't see anything moving out of his power that would have confused him more. He managed to pull himself into a sitting position, trying to stop the world, or at least what he could see of it, from spinning. His entire body began to ache all at once, as if the signal had been given by his abrupt change from horizontal to vertical. "#$^#er..."

When he looked in the direction the voice was coming from, he could see iron bars making broad lines across the angel's face, the same angel that had been speaking before. Cid was getting sick of seeing him. His voice was still condescending, still vain and haughty, and still far more musical then any voice should have any right to be.

"It's your own fault."

"@$^@ you." This time Cid's voice did hold contempt, unveiled and bare towards the angel. Cid tried to stand, falling at first ungracefully before managing to get himself up on his footclaws, leaning against the wall. He waited for the dizziness to pass, but unfortunately his headache did not. "#$^#, what th' #$^# happened t'me...?"

"We just rendered you unconscious, that is all." Again, the condescending, superior tone, as if the answer to the question was something that everyone in the world, excepting Cid, happened to know. The angel shrugged, white wings moving along with his motion. Cid snarled.

"No, what th' #$^# happened t'my clothes?"

Cid's shirt was completely missing, his chest marked with several abrasions and bruises, no doubt from his trip to the cell, and his pants were shredded almost what seemed to be purposely, now ending well above his knees. He could see his skin fading into the scales on his feet, not accustomed to having them uncovered against his will and he looked back at the angel, who kept an aura of unruffled professionalism.

"We searched you for weapons, but the damage to your clothing was caused by your transport here."

Cid glared at the angel for a moment before speaking, his voice low and dangerous. "Where's Vin?"

The angel made a disgusted noise and looked off to one side, his tone taking a more venemous edge. It was almost as if the demon's name was enough to harm or insult the angel in some way. "The demon is in a separate cell, waiting for the Judgement to start. We were waiting for you to regain consciousness before we began."

"If you $%&#in' TOUCHED him-!" Cid rushed towards the bars somewhat clumsily, reaching out for the angel who lightly hopped backwards out of range. It was a peculiar sight, the angel lifting off the ground, almost hovering for a few seconds as he moved backwards with calm, unperturbed grace. Cid struggled to reach the angel, thrusting his arms between the bars, clawing air, but the other creature prudentally remained out of reach. Cid could feel flame rising in his mouth and in his chest.

The angel stared at him for a moment, more then likely able to see the glow forming in the dragon's eyes, or the low rumbling growl that was working its way from Cid's throat. If he was scared, he was good at hiding it, and the angel's face again showed little emotion as he continued to speak in his calm, unstressed voice.

"I'll go inform the others that you're awake."

The angel moved off, quietly and with dignity, although the dragon could see the creature's wings quivering, no doubt from nervousness. Cid snorted angrily, frustrated, as he slid down the bars into a sitting position. The cold metal against his exposed back burned, and his wings cramped behind him, having suffered damage with the rest of his body, but that was the least of his concerns at the time. 

He sighed as he stared at his hands, the soft aura glowing in the darkness around him. He lightly touched one of his eyes, something that had become a constant source of pain for him and felt the rise of hurt and bruised skin, struggling to heal itself. He must have had a black eye, no doubt from his "transport" here...he continued to feel over his face, being careful and cautious around areas that already were in pain, and found something dry on his forehead that flaked away under the scrutiny of his claws. He must have had a cut that healed while he was asleep...however long THAT was...not to mention that his goggles were missing...if he had them in the first place...

He was almost positive that he hadn't just been dragged her and suffered these injuries by accident. Someone had taken revenge on him while he had been asleep, although they hadn't done too thorough a job. Perhaps the angels did not want to incriminate themselves in such an obvious way, but that made no sense at all, considering the position that Cid was in. Why would it matter to them what he thought? He was their prisoner...

He surveyed the cell critically, but found to his dismay nothing that could help him. It was fairly small and had almost nothing in it, not even a window. He couldn't think of any feasible way to escape...

And besides, if he did, he'd have to find Vincent and get him out as well...

If they had decided to rough him up while taking him to his cell, what had happened to Vincent? He felt a sick feeling rising in his stomach, causing the dizziness to return and the world to shift slightly, but he angrily scraped his claws against the stone floor beneath him, refusing to let himself lose control. He wouldn't think that, he couldn't. He would never let them hurt Vincent again, they wouldn't dare.

He didn't believe himself, but it was all he had, so he tried desperatly to believe his own lie. He knew at least that Vincent had to be alive, and to be conscious, as the angel had revealed that much when speaking about the Judgement. But in what condition would Vincent be in? Cid was almost afraid to find out, but he narrowed his eyes angrily as he continued his thought. Whoever had done it, if they had done anything, would pay for harming him. He would see to that.

He put a claw in his hair, letting a small fireball escape him as he tried to think. It lit the air with a bright flash of light that quickly faded, leaving a blotchy afterimage in his tired and swollen eyes. The return to darkness was a boon for the new pain the sudden flash of light had bestowed upon his eyes, and he made a note to keep his eyes closed if he wanted to breath more fire in such a dark space.

He wished he had a cigarette, and then realized that while he and Vincent had been spending time together, he hadn't felt the urge to smoke nearly as badly. He wondered if that had anything to do with the aura, then shrugged. It had a lot of mysteries around it he didn't understand, and they didn't particularly matter to him now.

He sighed as he twitched his tail lightly. He wished it wouldn't have to end this way, he wished that they hadn't been caught, he wished...

Although he had been telling Vincent for a while that he knew they were going to die, that there was nothing to be afraid of, the reality of it had never fully struck him until now. This was it...this was the end of the line...the end of everything.

Cid smiled to himself in the darkness as he let another plume of fire light it for a moment, keeping his eyes carefully shut. He could feel the heat and the light continued to penetrate through his eyelids, although it didn't hurt as it had before. The heat was welcome, as was the release of flame from his system. He let another small stream of fire escape him, letting his fangs show as he curled his lip upwards in hatred and defiance for his captors.

He was going to die, he knew that much for sure.

But he'd be #$^#ed if he didn't go down fighting.

~~~

An hour passed agonizingly slowly and he had very little to keep him amused. There was nothing in the room that could possibly entertain him, the walls being too sturdily constructed for him to mark or draw on, although he pressed his claws hard. He had, for some time, struggled against the bars, throwing his already battered body against them, but they held fast. He had even attempted breathing fire at the bars in an effort to melt them, but he could not keep up the necessary heat long enough, and it only made him feel sicker and weaker.

Most of his struggles occured in the first fifteen minutes, and then the rest of his time was spent slumped against a wall, his wings spread out in an effort to ease the aching in the thin joints. He sat and stared outwards, letting his mind relive most of his life. Remembering who he had been, what he had done. He spent a long time lingering over thoughts of Vincent, how they had first met, how he had known that he was doomed when the demon approached, and he did not attack. So many memories, so much time seemed to have passed, and yet it was nothing at all. In a way, his life was also nothing to beings whose lives were much longer then his own. He tried to follow that train of thought further, but his logical brain refused to ponder questions that had no real revelance to his situation. He sat and thought, remembering, sometimes humming to himself, but on the whole he was exceedingly bored. 

He was almost relieved to have them come, simply to relieve his boredom.

This time it was all dragons, the angels having learned from before, the whipping tail, lashing claws, burning flame, that it was not wise to approach an angry dragon. They carried several lengths of cord with them, along with some small lengths of chain, and they more then outnumbered the lone green-blue dragon in the cell. Already sensing that he had lost a battle that hadn't even begun, Cid stood, trying to intimidate, or at least show his defiance, in the face of such overwhelming odds.

"Get th' #$^# away from me!" Cid snarled, flaring his wings as best he could in such a confined space. As it was, his wings brushed the roof of the cell, but still did not expand to their full size. His antagonists seemed annoyed and frustrated, but not worried or frightened of his behavior. They watched him as he stood, trying to look bigger then he already was through his wings, hissing through his teeth, his claws held at ready in front of him.

Cid fought as best he could, but again, the small space and their number overwhelmed him once more. He managed to swipe at one once, missing, before one seized his arm in midswing, the other his other arm, and the mass of bodies pushed him to the ground, his muscles crying out angrily at being turned in such an unnatural manner. Cid bucked and thrashed, snarling and roaring as he let vent his primitive fury, but their number and their calm logic in the face of his rage gave them the upper hand.

After they had managed to get Cid pinned on the ground, a dragon to each of his limbs, one to his tail, the remaining dragons pushed his wings together, so the claws that rested at the top of his wings meshed, and they tied these together with some of the long strands of cord they had brought. After making sure it was tied securely, they tied the bottom tips of Cid's wings together as well, thus rendering them useless. Cid tried to struggle, to get them off of him, screaming obscenities all the while, but from his vantage point on the floor he couldn't do much.

After they had secured his wings, making them essentially useless, they moved to his feet, although they didn't tie these tightly together like the wings. The cord looped several times around each ankle, but there was a length between his two feet, no doubt to allow him to at least walk, even if it wasn't at his normal long stride, by himself. They looped it around his backclaws, the structure of his foot itself, and the dragons that had been holding down his legs holding his feet still so that they could be bound properly.

Cid continued struggling but to no avail. He refused to give up fighting, even though his tail soon become strung from its middle to the cord that connected his feet, and then again at the tip of his tail to the same point. His tail was now in a painful loop that prevented movement fairly well, and apparently pleased with this, they hoisted Cid off the ground roughly. Before he could try and move again, they pushed him against the wall of the cell, two of the dragons holding his shoulders back, while the others seized his claws, tying them as quickly as possible in front of the dragons body.

Cid at this point was enfuriated to where he could breathe fire, and he did this liberally, but the dragons who were bent to tie his hands raised their wings to shield their bodies, and those holding his shoulders moved out of the range. Unable to hold the flame for long, Cid ended up breathless, panting angrily as his claws became as useless as his wings now were, bound in front of him tightly, wrist to wrist, so much so that he worried that he might lose the feeling in them shortly.

The dragons again pushed him, or much rather threw him, to the floor of the cell, putting non-too-gentle footclaws on his back to prevent motion as they proceeded to loop another length of cord around his neck, with a long lead hanging from it. Cid screamed with fury at the thought of being leashed in such a way, but was unable to resist, and as soon as they let him up, he breathed fire angrily at his bonds, which resisted his efforts stubbornly. It made sense that it would have been protected for this contingency.

"#$^#ers! #$%^ you all!"

Apparently the lead around his neck was not required, or they had done it for some other reason, as they took him by his bound claws and led him out of the cell, down an increasingly bright hallway. Cid tried several times to break away or break free, but he had a full escort of other dragons around him, larger and (he noted with a flare of rage) taller then he was. He continued to snarl angrily, but the dragons seemed to know that he couldn't do anything. He couldn't walk as fast as they could, due to his footclaws being tied together in such a way, and he stumbled and tripped often, unable to catch himself with so much of his body bound tightly. The dragons around him would angrily catch him, shoving him back upwards with unconcealed distaste that Cid returned in abundance.

He was led down the gradually lightening passageway until a bright light surged ahead of him, overcoming his vision. He winced, wishing he could use his claws to shield his eyes, but as it was they were useless and immobile in front of him. He had to try and let his eyes adjust, which took some time that his guards weren't willing to allow him. They moved forward, dragging him along against his will, and finally Cid's vision managed to acclimate itself enough so that he could see where he was.

He knew he had to be in angel territory; that was the only possible conclusion. The light airy colors and overwhelming presence of blue tipped him off. He could feel a light breeze and guessed they had to be somewhere high, maybe a mountain or something. It would explain the stone cell and such. It definitly smelled of angels, however, and if that weren't enough to inform him of where he was, there were large stands set up on either side of him, filled with spectators eager to watch the criminals sentenced. He didn't blame them, considering.

The Grand Judgement was only reserved for the most heinous of crimes, and whatever the verdict happened to be would set a precedent for any violation that would come afterwards. They were extremly uncommon, but almost always ruled in favor of the angels and their beliefs, as it was the angels who ruled the council that would eventually decide his fate. Once the knowledge of a Grand Judgment was made known, the news spread quickly. To miss it meant you could miss everything, and the laws made in the Grand Judgement's continued to stand for all eternity. Cid could not remember when the last Grand Judgement had been, but apparently his sin had been enough to warrant him one. To stand here, in front of everyone, as the law was changed in order to punish him effectively, and anyone who dared to follow after him. Grand Judgments were rarely kind or merciful, dealing justice as the angels saw fit.

It was understandable that everyone would be present at such a massive and important ceremony, but that didn't make him hate them any less.

He was pushed forward amidst the jeers and shouts from the crowd, still swearing and struggling. They ignored his protests, leading him to a series of metal rings imbedded into the ground. It was logical, considering that subjects of the Grand Judgement varied from every species, that they'd have something specifically designed to restrain dragons.

They fastened his claws tightly by another long length of cord to one of the center loops, taking the slack that had been leading from his neck, looping it around the knots of his claws, then tying that to the middle loop as well. Cid thrashed about, amidst more calls from the crowd, but it served him as well as it had before. His footclaws were untied, but then shackled to two more metal loops some distance apart, preventing him from getting any kind of footing. He had to constantly scrabble in an effort to keep his balance. His tail was untied, only to be shackled to two separate loops at two separate places, thus preventing it's movement anywhere.

Cid pulled at the chains that held him constantly during the process, trying to move the now useless weight at his shoulders, the fingers of his wings aching more now that the sensitive tips were bound so cruelly and harshly. His efforts came to naught, however, and his bonds continued to hold strong. He snarled angrily at the crowd, exhaling a blast of fire at the last leaving dragon before slumping to the ground as best he could, too tired to stand. He was exhausted from all the flame he had breathed, all the energy he had spent in a futile effort to escape. He glowered at the lead angel who sat on a pedestal, holding a book in her lap with a small feather quill. The woman, her face framed by almost corded brown hair, stared down at him, magnificent white wings spreading behind her back as she began speaking, her voice melodic and beautiful.

"We are here for the judgement of two great sinners, the dragon Cid Highwind-"

There was a joyous shout from the crowd, and Cid could recognize Shera's colors even from where he was. He snarled to himself, unable to do anything, knowing that she must have had something to do with this, although he didn't know what. 

"And the demon Vincent Valentine."

The cheers and cries of jubilation from the crowd doubled for Vincent as they had for Cid, and Cid felt worry begin to creep into his chest. Whatever punishment they inflicted on them, Vincent would surely take the worst of it. He hoped the demon was alright, wherever he was...although such a hope was far too foolish to keep. It was more logical to hope that Vincent was still alive in general...

"I am the Archangel Marlene and I will be preceding over the affairs." She gestured to herself with her golden quill for a moment, pausing for what seemed to be dramatic effect. "First, we must review the sinners themselves. Cid Highwind."

Cid glanced up, a slight clinking of chains indicating his movement more then anything else. Flame was burning inside him, and he longed for just five minutes alone with the Archangel unbound.

"Can you justify your actions?"

Cid paused for a moment, actually smiling before he managed to cough out a reply. "Why th' #$^# should I justify anythin' t'YOU?"

The crowd hissed at his actions, and showed their disapproval through various ways, one of which involved throwing something at the dragon which fell pitifully short. Marlene did not seem fazed by this, continuing to speak in her beautiful voice, aware of the crowd, but not letting it show in her face or tone.

"Do you accept the things you have done?"

"#$^# yeah!" Cid shouted, causing the crowd to again condemn him, much more vigorously then before, but Cid didn't care. He struggled to rise, something difficult at the position his feet had been anchored in, and he glared at the angel, eyes burning. "I don't #$^#in' regret a god#$^# thing!"

"T'his credit..." A softer male voice near the woman spoke, although Cid could not see who was speaking. "The drag's say he was a great warrior..."

"The Grand Judgement awknowledges Wallace's comments, but reminds him that it is the Archangel who will be asking the questions." Marlene's tone was frosty, and the softer voice fell silent. She again stared at Cid, her gaze cold and calculating.

"Why did you sin in this way?"

"Why th' #$^# should I tell you?" Cid shouted back at her, his voice rough and uncontrolled, and the crowd again became angered against him, although Cid didn't care about them. "Why th' #$^# should I tell you anythin'? Drag me here for some #$^#in' rigged court! Jus' kill me like I know you're goin' to an' stop pretendin'!"

An uproar followed the dragons comment, but Marlene quickly silenced it with a wave of her hand. The crowd immediately deferred to the Archangel, who turned her gaze back to the dragon, speaking seriously. "The outcome will not always be death. Answer the questions or forsake your ability to defend yourself."

"I'm #$^#in' dead already anyway." Cid sat back down, glaring at her angrily. A tense pause followed while the dragon and the angel stared at one another, testing and challenging, before Marlene took a deep breath for a moment, writing something in the book on her lap. She didn't look up when Cid continued to speak. "Why th' #$%^ should I even try..."

Without looking up, she gestured with one hand, her voice quiet and deadly.

"Bring the demon."

Cid turned eagerly, with a touch of palpable fear in his heart, wanting to see Vincent more then anything at the moment, just to know that he was alright, or at least to know what had happened to him. There was some movement from the portal he had come from, and then several angels moved forward, carrying a large structure that rose above their heads, which resembled at most a form of the gallows.

Hanging from the structure by his wrists was the demon himself, and Cid stared, unbelieving, his mouth unconsciously falling open.

While Cid had suffered some injuries at the hand of his captors during his stay, Vincent had suffered far worse. The demon's thin chest bore fresh scars, only now beginning to clot and heal, as did his face, scars running across his cheek, his forehead, across his eyes, which were sealed tightly. He swayed with the movement of the creatures that bore the structure's footsteps, and his tail dragged along behind him, not moving, the dark skin hard to examine for injury. The metallic arm that distinguished Vincent so easily from all others was stained with rust red in akward patterns against the once shining metal. It seemed to be fairly intact, unlike the rest of the demons flesh body. However, in the dark, matted clumps of the demons hair, thick with what had to be blood, Cid could still see traces of the dark blue fabric of his shirt that he had given to the demon in replacement for the bandana he had given him, as proof of his death, but the irony was lost on Cid at the moment.

The thing that struck Cid the most were Vincent's wings. The tips had been bound together as his were, but apparently binding the wings was not enough insurance for the angels, faced with their greatest foe at their mercy. Between the thin fingers of Vincent's black wings, obviously broken in several places, white and bloodstained bones protruding through black skin, there was nothing, only tattered remains of what had once been the membrane that allowed him to fly. The membrane had not been removed carefully, but obviously ripped, torn out, by the uneven edges of the scraps of thin, bleeding flesh that remained, clinging to the bones of his wings like the two of them had tried to cling to their life. From the bottom tips of the wings, tied together tightly with the same kind of cord that had been used on Cid, he could see a steady, but slow stream of droplets, dark and thick, falling from the brutalized limbs, spattering into the dust that formed the floor of the sick Judgement grounds. The demons footclaws had been bound to one another, with no room inbetween for movement, the indentations of the tight cord against black skin visible even to Cid, and the only garment that covered the pathetic beings body were the tattered remains of his pants, in worse condition then Cid's had been, torn up past his thighs, barely able to hide him from the hateful gaze of the crowd that cheered and clapped when the demon came into view. 

There were bloody streaks across the demon's face, some dark and some fresh, and Cid knew they had to be tears.

"You #$^#ERS!" Cid shouted, rushing against his bonds only to fall flat, unable to escape. They tightened angrily against his skin and scales, sending waves of pain through already pained limbs, but he ignored them in fury, pulling with all his might. "How th' #$^# could you do that t'him!?"

Vincent lifted his head slightly from its resting position against his chest, eyes easing open slowly, almost completly red, to meet with Cid's for a moment. When he opened his mouth, Cid noted one of his fangs missing. 

He seemed to be trying to speak, but the procession that was carrying him dropped their cargo, interrupting him, leaving Vincent hanging just off the ground, his tail brushing the dust, painfully suspended by bruised and bleeding arms. The broken and pathetic things hanging from his back twitched occasionally, no doubt Vincent trying to move the tattered remains of his once large, black wings. The pathetically jerky, pained movements again caused Cid to rise in fury, the chains that held him clanking loudly. 

"#$^#ERS! #$^#IN' #$%##$^#! I'LL #$^#IN' KILL YOU!" Cid surged against his bounds repeatedly, the power of his anger making him continue his futile attempts. Vincents tail moved slightly, and finally Cid could hear the demons voice come to him through the wind. It was tired and hoarse and cracked painfully. Cid did not want to think why Vincent's vocal chords would be damaged so badly, of what he had been through...

"Highwind..."

"Vincent Valentine, can you justify your actions?" Marlene showed no reaction to the demons condition, almost as if it was nothing out of the ordinary, or Cid's outrage, pointing at the demon with the golden quill for a moment. Vincent struggled to look up, his black hair that once fell so smoothly now striking his face, hiding his eyes, unable to be brushed away. He could not even muster the energy to shake his head to one side, to move the errant strands away.

It took a moment for his voice to be able to be heard over the crowd. "No."

Marlene marked something in her book. "Do you accept the things you've done?"

Vincent's reply came quickly. "Yes."

"Why did you sin in this way?"

Vincent paused for a moment before speaking again. "Love."

Cid pulled at the chains holding him fiercely, ignoring the bite of metal through his skin and scales. He refused to let this go on, he refused to let this happen...

Another rush of fire escaped him angrily, blasting the earth in front of him. The fact that this continued to do nothing only frustrated him further.

The disorder and chaos that had been caused among those in the stands at Vincent's quiet, yet sure word was amazing, and Marlene actually had to wave her hand twice to silence them, something that only made her harden her facial features.

"You have heard the testimony of the condemned." Her voice rose again, musical and yet so dangerous. The notes that Cid knew would end his life, but more importantly, the life of the demon nearby. "Their motives for doing what they have done. Do you approve?"

The crowds thunderous reply did not surprise Cid in the least, and he closed his eyes for a moment.

"I ask you now, both of you, to explain something to us gathered here." Marlene gestured at them both with the quill. "Why has Heaven's Aura been bestowed upon you? What tricks have you played on the gods that govern us to get it?"

"It's not a #$^#in' trick!" Cid shouted in response amidst the uproar from the bystanders. "It jus' #$^#in' happened. What th' #$^# were we supposed t'do?"

Cid struggled to draw himself to his full height, bound as he was. "How can you say we're sinners when the gods them #$^#in' SELVES say we're right!?"

Screaming from the crowds drowned Cid out, and they continued for a while at the words of such blasphemy. The gaze on Marlene's face became dark and terrible, and she stood, flaring out her snow-white wings behind her, pointing at Cid with a dramatic flair that only made Cid glare at her with more hatred.

"Do not presume to speak for the gods, lizard! You know NOTHING of what you speak!"

"Then #$^#in' kill me! KILL ME!" Cid's last words escaped with a flare of flame. "Stop #$^@in' around and #$^%in' kill me for bein' right! An' you know I am!"

"Silence!" Marlene held her arms out to her sides, the loose robe that all angels wore stopping perfectly at her wrists. The crowd reluctantly grew silent, deeply insulted by the words that the dragon continued to dare to speak in the presence of one of their most revered. The angel stood for a moment, her wings almost holding the sun in between their feathered expanses as she stared down at the two chained, powerless beings.

"Take the demon away, and restrain him in true fashion." Her words were quick and sharp, like someone had been caught playing an instrument they had been forbidden to touch, and gave a few flickering moments of playing before running off. Within moments the group that had carried the makeshift gallows returned, settling to their position next to it, lifting the construct off the ground and beginning to move off. Vincent's eyes opened wide with panic, faint glimmers of white showing through the almost completely scarlet orbs, several droplets falling free from the newly opened eyes as Vincent stared at the dragon, who threw himself violently against his bindings, trying to reach the demon desperatly.

"Highwind, don't, please don't let them..." Vincent's voice was panicked and frightened, but a jostle from one of those carrying the gallows, strong enough to cause him to swing on his pained and swollen wrists, reminded him, and he fell silent, only his frightened, tearful eyes to continue what he wanted to say.

Cid again rushed against his bonds, repeatedly, falling heavily against the ground several times as he tried to break free, the chains and cord too strong for him. He again hit the ground, bodily, his breath driven from him in one moment, his wings flopping uselessly to his right as he breathed heavily through his mouth, staring through the dust that swirled upwards from his hot breath at the quickly disappearing visage of the demon, carried away by his tormentors.

Cid forced himself back upwards angrily, snarling, his fangs cutting into his lips with anger as he glared at Marlene for several moments before venturing to speak.

"What are you goin' to do to him?"

Marlene had not forgotten what Cid had said beforehand, and the dangerous, malevolent look on her normally passive features prevailed, although at this point Cid was too far gone to begin to feel frightened. Her voice was cold and quiet.

"We are going to discuss this. You will wait here."

"The #$^# I will!"

Marlene turned on him scornfully, ignoring the dragons fury as he roared angrily, testing all his muscles against what bound him so stubbornly to the ground. Marlene walked off, wings blinding in the brightening sun, and Cid was stuck again, waiting.

Although this time he had the crowd to keep him company, which did not make him feel better.

They couldn't have come to a decision already, could they...? He forced himself to think rationally as he sat, trying to regain his breath. These things usually take time...there's no way that they would have already come to judgement against them...

Cid had a sick feeling inside that, considering this was no ordinary case, there would be no ordinary ruling.

So his judgement was coming...

He sat, struggling to keep his rage under control. This was a bit early for his tastes.

Early and excessive. 


End file.
